Another Baha’i Buried Improperly in Tehran Cemetery

Source: iranwire.com

Officials from Behesht Zahra, Tehran’s main cemetery, have sparked fresh outrage by burying the body of a deceased Baha’i, Abbas Manavi, without the consent or knowledge of his family. 

To compound the distress, it has been revealed that Manavi was interred over the grave of another deceased Baha’i who had passed away two months earlier at Khavaran cemetery.

The burial was carried out by Iranian officials despite the family’s persistent concerns and attempts to obtain information about the condition of their loved one’s remains.

Since March of this year, Behesht Zahra officials have been trying to extract exorbitant fees from Baha’is for the release of the remains of loved ones to these families. 

Families have faced threats, with officials warning that non-payment would result in the burial of their cherished ones in the Khavaran mass graves area. 

The saga has seen several deceased Baha’is laid to rest in Khavaran throughout the year, with families left in the dark until after it has happened, and depriving relatives the opportunity to perform religious ceremonies for their departed loved ones. 

Reports obtained by IranWire indicate that the cemetery morgue still holds the bodies of four Baha’is, as Behesht Zahra refuses their release.

Adjacent to Khavaran cemetery, the Baha’i cemetery of Tehran has long been the designated resting place for the Baha’i community, but recent reports indicate that a Ministry of Intelligence official has stopped the Baha’is from using their own cemetery.