According to information obtained by IranWire, Armin Soltan-Mohammadi, a 19-year-old man, was killed on the evening of Thursday, January 8, in the area around Third Square in Tehranpars, a large residential and commercial district in east Tehran. 

He died after being shot in the head with what sources described as a war-grade bullet.

Sources told IranWire that Soltan-Mohammadi went missing at around 11:00 pm while participating in protests. 

At approximately 2:00 am, hospital authorities contacted his family to inform them that he had died. He has since been buried at Tehran’s Behesht-e Zahra cemetery.

Behesht-e Zahra is Tehran’s main cemetery. Burials linked to what authorities classify as “security cases,” including protesters, are often subject to close monitoring. 

In some instances, families are pressured to conduct funerals in designated sections or at unusual hours to prevent ceremonies from turning into public protests.

Soltan-Mohammadi was a laborer. Despite his young age, he had previously worked as a mechanic and had recently begun working as a house painter.

IranWire reviewed one of his final social media stories, a repost that read, “This Thursday and Friday, I’m going out with friends to walk the city. If there’s even a one percent chance that I go and don’t return, you celebrate in my place during the upcoming festivities.”

The post referred to calls by Prince Reza Pahlavi for nationwide gatherings on Thursday and Friday, January 8 and 9, which drew large crowds onto the streets across Iran. 

In response, the Islamic Republic launched a widespread crackdown, during which security forces used lethal force against protesters.