Blinded Protester Arrested By Iranian Regime, His Whereabouts Remain Unknown

Amir Velayati, a 24-year-old man, who lost his eye during the first week of protests triggered by the September death of Mahsa Amini, was detained as the Iranian regime intensified pressures against protesters.

According to one of his friends, Velayati was rejected by several hospitals when he was injured but finally was admitted to one where he was told a pellet was lodged 1 millimeter away from his brain, Iran Wire reported in March.

Harsh Naqshbandi, an actor and theater director is another victim who lost an eye and was arrested in recent days with no information about his current whereabouts either.

Parsa Ghobadi, another protester who lost both eyes, was detained along with his brother recently. He was released after a few days, but his brother is still in custody.

Meanwhile, Iran International's sources report threatening phone calls from security organizations to women whose eyes were damaged in last year's nationwide protests, asking them not to write anything about their injury on social media.

Last month, a report by Norway-based Iran Human Rights confirmed earlier speculations that the Islamic Republic security forces have been systematically targeting protesters’ eyes.

The human rights group documented over 20 cases of people being blinded in one eye as a result of fire from the security agents during protests, adding that initial data indicates young women were disproportionately represented among people who had sustained such injuries.