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Neda Agha-Soltan (Persian: ندا آقا سلطان – Nedā Āġā-Soltān; b 1982 – d June 20, 2009)[2][3] was an Iranian woman whose killing, during the 2009 Iranian election protests, was captured on video by bystanders.[4] The graphic videos were posted on the Internet, and her name quickly became a rallying cry for the opposition.[4] Neda means “voice” or “calling” in Persian, and she has been referred to as the “voice of Iran” and “a symbol of pro-democracy protesters battering the Islamic regime” in the world.[5][6][7][2] Her last name has also been spelled as Soltani in some media reports.[8]
Circumstances of death
On June 20, 2009, Neda, a philosophy student[9], was sitting in her car in traffic on Kargar Avenue in the city of Tehran[4], near the Amir-Abad area, accompanied by her music teacher. Having gotten out of the car because of the excessive heat, she was allegedly targeted and shot in the chest by plainclothes Basij paramilitaries who were attempting to subdue a protest march.[10] Undated amateur videos depicting Neda collapsing to the ground, being tended to, and apparently dying, were uploaded to Facebook and YouTube[4], and spread across the internet virally.
The videos were accompanied by a message from a doctor, allegedly a frontline physician during the Iran-Iraq war, who claimed to have been present during the incident:
At 19:05 June 20th Place: Kargar Ave., at the corner crossing Khosravi St. and Salehi st. A young woman who was standing aside with her father [SIC, later identified as her music teacher] watching the protests was shot by a basij member hiding on the rooftop of a civilian house. He had clear shot at the girl and could not miss her. However, he aimed straight her heart. I am a doctor, so I rushed to try to save her. But the impact of the gunshot was so fierce that the bullet had blasted inside the victim’s chest, and she died in less than 2 minutes. The protests were going on about 1 kilometers away in the main street and some of the protesting crowd were running from tear gass used among them, towards Salehi St. The film is shot by my friend who was standing beside me. Please let the world know.”[11]
Neda was taken to a morgue outside Tehran, where her family agreed to the removal of her organs for transplanting to medical patients. Her body was buried at the Behesht-e-Zahra cemetery in southern Tehran. Iranian authorities had allegedly set aside empty graves for those killed during the protests.[12]
Discussions about Neda on Twitter, using a hashtag of #neda became one of the “‘trending topics’” by the end of the day on June 20, 2009.[4] The authenticity of the videos, the location of the incident, and the identity of the alleged killer have not yet been independently confirmed by the mainstream media. Neda’s death was not reported by the state-controlled Iranian media, but was reported by international media. CNN has shown the video multiple times, both with and without censoring of the blood as it poured out of her mouth and nose.
Sources have variously identified Neda as a 16-year old and a 26 or 27-year old.[13] She is almost uniformly identified as a university student.[13] The authenticity of a portrait of her that has been used for many news stories is unknown. The Guardian has stated that Neda worked part-time at a travel agency.[14]
There are two videos depicting Neda’s death; one shows Neda collapsing to the ground, apparently still conscious. The second shows Neda only after she appears to lose consciousness and begins to bleed heavily.
The first video appears to have been recorded using a mobile phone.[15] The cameraman approaches a group of people huddled together in front of a parked car at the side of the street. As he moves closer, Neda can be seen collapsing to the pavement with a large bloodstain at her feet. Two men, one initially assumed to be her father, but later confirmed to be her music teacher, are seen trying to revive her; as seconds pass, her eyes roll to one side and she appears to lose consciousness. Blood begins to pour from her nose and mouth, and screams are heard.
At this point in time, the second video begins.[16] The cameraman approaches Neda and the two men; the camera passes over them and centers on Neda’s face; her stare is blank and she is bleeding profusely from her nose and mouth. Loud screaming can be heard.
The man next to Neda can apparently be heard speaking in the first video, saying her name;
“Neda, don’t be afraid. Neda, don’t be afraid. [obscured by others yelling] Neda, stay with me. Neda stay with me!”
A third video appeared which purportedly shows Neda at the protest march, before her death.[17]
On 22 June, 2009, Iranian presidential candidates Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hossein Moussavi, who are contesting the validity of the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, called upon Iranian citizens to commemorate Agha-Soltan.[18] Karroubi announced his appeal on Facebook, asking demonstrators to gather in the center of of the Iranian capital at 4:00 pm local time.[18]
Twitter entries announced that Neda Soltani was buried at the Behesht-e Zahra cemetery, denied a funeral by government authorities.[18] The refusal of the government to allow a funeral was also alleged by a family acquaintance.[19] The Iranian government has issued a ban on collective prayers in mosques for Agha-Soltan in the aftermath of the incident.[20]
Time magazine and other news sources[21] have speculated that due to the widespread attention given to Neda’s story by social media networks and mainstream news organizations, she is already being hailed as a martyr. There is also speculation that the Shi’ite cycle of mourning on the third, seventh and 40th day after a person’s death may give the protests sustained momentum, in similar fashion to the Iranian Revolution, where each commemoration of a demonstrator’s death sparked renewed protests, resulting in more deaths, feeding a cycle that eventually resulted in the overthrowing of Iran’s monarchy.[22]
TRIBUTE TO NEDA SOLTANI ON YOU TUBE
On 22 June, 2009, Iranian presidential candidates Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hossein Moussavi, who are contesting the validity of the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, called upon Iranian citizens to commemorate Agha-Soltan.[18] Karroubi announced his appeal on Facebook, asking demonstrators to gather in the center of of the Iranian capital at 4:00 pm local time.[18]
Twitter entries announced that Neda Soltani was buried at the Behesht-e Zahra cemetery, denied a funeral by government authorities.[18] The refusal of the government to allow a funeral was also alleged by a family acquaintance.[19] The Iranian government has issued a ban on collective prayers in mosques for Agha-Soltan in the aftermath of the incident.[20]
Time magazine and other news sources[21] have speculated that due to the widespread attention given to Neda’s story by social media networks and mainstream news organizations, she is already being hailed as a martyr. There is also speculation that the Shi’ite cycle of mourning on the third, seventh and 40th day after a person’s death may give the protests sustained momentum, in similar fashion to the Iranian Revolution, where each commemoration of a demonstrator’s death sparked renewed protests, resulting in more deaths, feeding a cycle that eventually resulted in the overthrowing of Iran’s monarchy.[22]
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