On April 30, 2024, a report by BBC Eye investigation revealed new documents regarding the controversial case of Nika Shakarami, a teenager who died under disputed circumstances during the “Women, Life, Freedom” protests in 2022.
The documents claim that Nika was hunted down, sexually assaulted, and bludgeoned to death by three Iranian policemen. However, instead of clarifying the case, the report added to the vagueness about her fate, especially after pro-regime social media activists and official statements generated counter-narratives. Â
It is hardly the first dissent-related murder case in the history of the Islamic Republic. The beating death of Canadian-Iranian journalist Zahra Kazemi in Evin prison in 2003, the fatal shooting of Neda Agha Soltan, a 27-year-old woman, in central Tehran on June 20, 2009, while participating in a peaceful anti-government demonstration, and the death of Haleh Sahabi during her father’s funeral in 2011 are other cases that darken the regime’s record.
Nika, a 16-year-old Iranian protester, disappeared during the demonstrations on September 20, 2022, and her body was discovered dead eight days later. The circumstances of her death grabbed the headlines of Farsi mainstream media and social networks and led to a clash of narratives between pro-Western media critical of the Islamic Republic, such as the BBC, Iran International, and Voice of America, and the official media of the Islamic regime and its cyber army. This battle of narratives fueled heated debates on radio and TV programs and social media platforms.
Although no firsthand witnesses have provided direct accounts of Nika’s death, the media battle surrounding her case has persisted. That may be why both sides, driven by their respective biases and hearsay, have presented conflicting versions of events, revealing inconsistencies and unresolved questions in each other’s narratives. As one digs deeper into the story, including the BBC report and the reactions from Iranian authorities, as well as contradictory interpretations on social media, there is more ambiguity than clarity regarding how Nika died.
BBC Investigation
Some commentators have pointed out a discrepancy between the time of Nika’s arrest and her mother’s account as reported by the BBC. Critics claim that the report states that Nika’s body was left on Yadgar Imam Highway after she was killed on September 20. In a video provided to Radiofarda in 2022, Nika’s mother, Nasrin, stated that she last spoke to Nika on September 19 between 11:30 and 11:40 p.m. Later, in an audio interview with Iran International, she clarified that the call occurred on September 20 and that she had initially been mistaken about the date. The BBC report does not mention the exact date of Nika’s death, contrary to what government supporters claim.
Critics have also raised concerns about the authenticity of the documents on which the report is based. The BBC acknowledges that there are possible inconsistencies. For instance, the “Naja” (the old name of the police force) quoted in the report was known as “Faraja” at the time.
The BBC said the documents were confirmed by a security official in Iran. Nevertheless, the confirmation relies on BBC experts and sources, who are not identified to the public.
Hamshahrionline, a website run by the Tehran municipality, also questioned the authenticity of the documents due to the lack of a “very confidential” seal and the absence of a date and letter number on the papers. The BBC claims that it redacted the documents to protect the safety of its sources. Kaveh Mousavi, an Iranian-British human rights lawyer, brought to light the differences between BBC World and BBC Farsi’s positions on the authenticity of the documents.
In the eyes of Iranian media, especially hardline outlets like the Islamic Republic News Agency or IRNA, the BBC investigation fails to address crucial questions, such as how Nika’s body allegedly wound up in a building on Labafinejad Street, a significant distance away from Yadgar Imam Highway.
Inconsistencies in Official Reports
Meanwhile, the Iranian judiciary’s website, Mizan Online, has claimed that Nika committed suicide and that her death had nothing to do with the 2022 protests. Iranian state TV aired a CCTV video showing a girl, whose face is unclear, entering a building from which it was claimed Nika jumped to her death. However, Nika’s mother asserted that the girl in the video was not her daughter.
If we assume that the girl shown in the footage is Nika, questions arise regarding who opened the door for her and why there is no report of who Nika contacted in the building. Another question is why official reports do not mention Nika’s mother’s claim that, according to some witnesses, Nika’s body was brought to the building between 4 and 5 am.
Nika’s case thus has many dark spots that neither the BBC report nor the official narratives have clarified. The verbal conflict and mutual accusations between Nika’s mother and aunt on online platforms further darken the atmosphere. In this environment, where the truth is hard to discern, the credibility of the official media in Iran has been seriously undermined due to a lack of social trust after the regime’s use of excessive violence against protesters.
Moreover, independent media and journalists have been accused of “confounding the public mind,” “spreading lies,” and “acting against national security,” as Abbas Abdi, an Iranian political expert, noted. Supporting the BBC’s investigation, some media figures argued that in an environment where the Islamic government suppresses women daily, nobody accepts official narratives. The excessive violence practiced during the 2022 protests shows the pattern of the regime’s security forces making uncalculated mistakes.
The Woman, Life, Freedom movement was sparked by the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of the so-called morality police. Iranian authorities asserted that Mahsa’s death was due to an underlying disease, while regime opponents and even the UN believe that Mahsa was subjected to physical violence, which caused a concussion that put her in a coma and led to her death.
Allegations of torture, murder, and forced confessions by security forces and interrogators in recent decades, combined with a lack of transparency in judicial procedures, have fueled growing accusations against the Islamic Republic. Though Iran’s security apparatus has learned over time to produce counter-narratives to challenge those offered by the opposition or Western media, in the long run, this strategy may backfire as Iranians might blame their government for heinous acts even when it is not responsible.
Mohammad Mazhari is a political scientist who served as editor-in-chief of the Arabic Mehr News Agency from 2013-2020 and as a journalist at the Tehran Times from 2020-2021.
Recent Investigations Only Make Nika Shakarami’s Tragic Fate More Obscure
By Mohammad Mazhari
Middle East & North Africa
On April 30, 2024, a report by BBC Eye investigation revealed new documents regarding the controversial case of Nika Shakarami, a teenager who died under disputed circumstances during the “Women, Life, Freedom” protests in 2022.
The documents claim that Nika was hunted down, sexually assaulted, and bludgeoned to death by three Iranian policemen. However, instead of clarifying the case, the report added to the vagueness about her fate, especially after pro-regime social media activists and official statements generated counter-narratives. Â
It is hardly the first dissent-related murder case in the history of the Islamic Republic. The beating death of Canadian-Iranian journalist Zahra Kazemi in Evin prison in 2003, the fatal shooting of Neda Agha Soltan, a 27-year-old woman, in central Tehran on June 20, 2009, while participating in a peaceful anti-government demonstration, and the death of Haleh Sahabi during her father’s funeral in 2011 are other cases that darken the regime’s record.
Nika, a 16-year-old Iranian protester, disappeared during the demonstrations on September 20, 2022, and her body was discovered dead eight days later. The circumstances of her death grabbed the headlines of Farsi mainstream media and social networks and led to a clash of narratives between pro-Western media critical of the Islamic Republic, such as the BBC, Iran International, and Voice of America, and the official media of the Islamic regime and its cyber army. This battle of narratives fueled heated debates on radio and TV programs and social media platforms.
Although no firsthand witnesses have provided direct accounts of Nika’s death, the media battle surrounding her case has persisted. That may be why both sides, driven by their respective biases and hearsay, have presented conflicting versions of events, revealing inconsistencies and unresolved questions in each other’s narratives. As one digs deeper into the story, including the BBC report and the reactions from Iranian authorities, as well as contradictory interpretations on social media, there is more ambiguity than clarity regarding how Nika died.
BBC Investigation
Some commentators have pointed out a discrepancy between the time of Nika’s arrest and her mother’s account as reported by the BBC. Critics claim that the report states that Nika’s body was left on Yadgar Imam Highway after she was killed on September 20. In a video provided to Radiofarda in 2022, Nika’s mother, Nasrin, stated that she last spoke to Nika on September 19 between 11:30 and 11:40 p.m. Later, in an audio interview with Iran International, she clarified that the call occurred on September 20 and that she had initially been mistaken about the date. The BBC report does not mention the exact date of Nika’s death, contrary to what government supporters claim.
Critics have also raised concerns about the authenticity of the documents on which the report is based. The BBC acknowledges that there are possible inconsistencies. For instance, the “Naja” (the old name of the police force) quoted in the report was known as “Faraja” at the time.
The BBC said the documents were confirmed by a security official in Iran. Nevertheless, the confirmation relies on BBC experts and sources, who are not identified to the public.
Hamshahrionline, a website run by the Tehran municipality, also questioned the authenticity of the documents due to the lack of a “very confidential” seal and the absence of a date and letter number on the papers. The BBC claims that it redacted the documents to protect the safety of its sources. Kaveh Mousavi, an Iranian-British human rights lawyer, brought to light the differences between BBC World and BBC Farsi’s positions on the authenticity of the documents.
In the eyes of Iranian media, especially hardline outlets like the Islamic Republic News Agency or IRNA, the BBC investigation fails to address crucial questions, such as how Nika’s body allegedly wound up in a building on Labafinejad Street, a significant distance away from Yadgar Imam Highway.
Inconsistencies in Official Reports
Meanwhile, the Iranian judiciary’s website, Mizan Online, has claimed that Nika committed suicide and that her death had nothing to do with the 2022 protests. Iranian state TV aired a CCTV video showing a girl, whose face is unclear, entering a building from which it was claimed Nika jumped to her death. However, Nika’s mother asserted that the girl in the video was not her daughter.
If we assume that the girl shown in the footage is Nika, questions arise regarding who opened the door for her and why there is no report of who Nika contacted in the building. Another question is why official reports do not mention Nika’s mother’s claim that, according to some witnesses, Nika’s body was brought to the building between 4 and 5 am.
Nika’s case thus has many dark spots that neither the BBC report nor the official narratives have clarified. The verbal conflict and mutual accusations between Nika’s mother and aunt on online platforms further darken the atmosphere. In this environment, where the truth is hard to discern, the credibility of the official media in Iran has been seriously undermined due to a lack of social trust after the regime’s use of excessive violence against protesters.
Moreover, independent media and journalists have been accused of “confounding the public mind,” “spreading lies,” and “acting against national security,” as Abbas Abdi, an Iranian political expert, noted. Supporting the BBC’s investigation, some media figures argued that in an environment where the Islamic government suppresses women daily, nobody accepts official narratives. The excessive violence practiced during the 2022 protests shows the pattern of the regime’s security forces making uncalculated mistakes.
The Woman, Life, Freedom movement was sparked by the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of the so-called morality police. Iranian authorities asserted that Mahsa’s death was due to an underlying disease, while regime opponents and even the UN believe that Mahsa was subjected to physical violence, which caused a concussion that put her in a coma and led to her death.
Allegations of torture, murder, and forced confessions by security forces and interrogators in recent decades, combined with a lack of transparency in judicial procedures, have fueled growing accusations against the Islamic Republic. Though Iran’s security apparatus has learned over time to produce counter-narratives to challenge those offered by the opposition or Western media, in the long run, this strategy may backfire as Iranians might blame their government for heinous acts even when it is not responsible.
Mohammad Mazhari is a political scientist who served as editor-in-chief of the Arabic Mehr News Agency from 2013-2020 and as a journalist at the Tehran Times from 2020-2021.
Recent & Related