Farhang Amiri, Murdered September 28, 2016 in Yazd, Designated a Martyr by Universal House of Justice

Source: www.goldnews.biz

Translation by Iran Press Watch

Gold News reported that Mr. Farhang Amiri, a Baha’i citizen of Yazd murdered on September 28, 2016 in Yazd has been designated a martyr by the Universal House of Justice (the governing body of the Baha’i international community).

On Sunday 27^th September, two unidentified individuals arrived at the home of Farhang Amiri. Mr. Amiri’s son Payam answered the door. The people asked him if they wanted to sell their car. Payam replied: “No,” and then they left. The next night, around eight o’clock, these individuals returned to Mr. Amiri’s home and repeated their request. This time, Mr. Amiri opened the door and told them he had no intention to sell the car. For an unknown reason, an argument broke out, and one of the individuals stabbed Farhang Amiri with a knife. Because of the noise, Mr. Amiri’s children came out and saw their father injured on the ground; they began shouting, and the two individuals ran towards the busy main street. Shopkeepers and neighbors ran after them ‒ one of the shopkeepers even followed them with his motorcycle. They caught one of them, but the second person escaped the scene… An ambulance arrived after much delay after half an hour, and took Mr. Amiri ‒ who was still alive ‒ with them. It is not known if Mr. Amiri died in the ambulance or at the hospital. The police arrived after more time, and arrested the accomplice as a result of a lead from the first assassin. The Amiri family are long-term residents of Yazd’s Ghasemabad neighborhood, where Baha’is, Muslims, and Zoroastrians live in peace, treat each other well, and all the neighbors are friendly and greet each other. Mr. Amiri had bad memories also: “The late Mr. Amiri, as a child, witnessed the murder of his father, Hedayatullah Daftari, and six other family members, by fanatics in the town of Hormozak in Yazd.” In July 1955, after a series of inflammatory speeches by Ayatollah Falsafi against Baha’is, a number of extremists stormed the homes of Baha’is in Hormozak and brutally murdered seven Baha’is.

Regarding statements from the police regarding a two million touman (approx $630) financial dispute, a source close to the family has said: “Mr. Amiri had no intention of selling the car; so how could an argument about a difference in price arise? Despite the fact that the two attackers were told that the car was not for sale on the first night, they still returned with the same excuse the next evening. Suppose that the two men were buyers ‒ does someone who wants to buy a car carry a knife?”

Following the news about the murder of Mr. Farhang Amiri, a Baha’i citizen from Yazd, Government-controlled media proceeded to publish false statements about the cause and description of the incident. Close relatives of the victim vehemently denied this false news. Government-affiliated media tried to emphasize this act as a non-religious event. But the Universal House of Justice, in their message on October 19, 2016, stated that the murder resulted from religious fanaticism, and they recognized Mr. Farhang Amiri as a martyr of the Baha’i International Community.