Pop star Dies, Arrest of Acid Attacker, Prosecutor Disbarred: News from Around Iran

This week in Iran’s provinces: Iranian actor and singer dies of cancer; kidnapped Iranian soldier is confirmed dead; Tehran’s former chief prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi is disbarred and banned from government; cancer patients in Khorasan suffer from malnutrition; a Sirjan official is arrested for bribery; former Iranian wrestler dies mysteriously in jail.

 

Fans mourn death of Morteza Pashaei

Iranian popstar Morteza Pashaei, 30, died on November 14, having suffered from cancer for several months. His funeral, which took place two days later in the Vahdat Hall venue in Tehran, brought thousands of mourners to the streets of Tehran and other big cities across Iran.

Huge crowds blocked some of Tehran’s biggest streets while his coffin was being carried to a cemetery in the south of the city. Fans held vigils in cities across the country to mourn his passing. Police were called out in several cities to deal with the crowds. 

Pashaei’s burial was postponed by several hours so that authorities could manage the crowds.

Pashaei was moved from Intensive Care after chemotherapy was unsuccessful on Tuesday, November 11, according to Iranian news reports.

 

Acid attack suspect arrested in Mashhad

A 35-year-old man was arrested for throwing acid on his wife in Delijan, a city in the northeastern province of Khorasan. 

The man threw acid on his wife’s face because she told him she was going to live with her family in Tehran but had really moved to another house in the same city, according to Khorasan newspaper.

The man tried to escape by crossing the Iranian border but police arrested him before he could escape. 

 

Sirjan official arrested for bribery

A member of Sirjan City Council, situated in the southeastern province of Kerman, was arrested for accepting bribes on November 13.

At least 15 managers, former city council members and Sirjan municipality staff have been arrested or investigated in recent months. The Sirjan justice department revealed the investigation was related to corruption, according to Pasargad Weekly news agency.

According to the report, Iranian media is banned from covering both the investigation and the corruption scandal.

 

Former Iranian wrestler dies in mysterious circumstances

Babak Ghorbani, a former member of Iran’s national wrestling team, died under unknown circumstances while in prison for murder on November 15.

Ghorbani and his brother killed a man while on a hunting trip in Kermanshah. Both men have been in jail ever since, and Ghorbani was on death row.

According to Tasnim news, Ghorbani committed suicide. Ghorbani won a gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.

 

Tehran’s former chief prosecutor disbarred

The Supreme Court permanently disbarred Saeed Mortazavi, a former hardliner chief prosecutor in Tehran. He was also banned from taking any position in government for the next five years, Iranian media reported on November 16.

Mortazavi was suspended in August 2010 after three anti-government protesters died while in custody at Kahrizak Prisonin 2009. In July that year, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ordered that the detention center  be closed.

 

Actor Majid Bahrami dies at 37

Actor Majid Bahrami died on November 15 in Tehran’s Pars Hospital aged just 37, having battled with cancer for the past four years.

Bahrami starred in Iranian movies including Farewell Baghdad, Gilaneh, and Tiny Flakes of Snow. He was diagnosed while he was acting in a play entitled The Wonder of Creatures in 2011.

 

Danaefar confirmed dead by MP

Jamshid Danaeifar, an Iranian border guard kidnapped by a Pakistan-based Sunni insurgent group in February, was confirmed dead by MP Mohammad Reza Mohsenisani on November 14.

Due to a lack of evidence, the claim is yet to be confirmed by other Iranian officials or police.

Danaeifar, along with four other Iranian soldiers, was abducted in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, an area that borders Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The four other guards were released after being held hostage for two months but the fate of the remaining soldier was uncertain, Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice) tweeting that they had killed him on March 23.

 

Khorasan cancer patients suffer from malnutrition

Sixty percent of all cancer patients suffer from poor nutrition in their daily diets, said Hamid Hariri, Chairman of the Cancer Support Community in Khorasan province.

According to the report, most people diagnosed with cancer are from deprived families, meaning they are unable to afford certain medications, vitamin pills, protein and high-quality foods.

Generally speaking, people suffering from cancer require high-energy diets that are rich in protein.