Iran Focus: Tehran, May 03 A young man was injured when Irans State Security Forces (SSF) opened fire on residents in the Kurdish city of Mahabad (Western Iran) late Saturday evening. The incident took place in the city centre and Ash-Mam Ahmad district, where officials of the SSF were seen to be pursuing unknown people. Rahmat Khakpour, a 23-year-old first year Electronics university student, was injured after being shot at as he was returning home. Iran Focus
Tehran, May 03 A young man was injured when Irans State Security Forces (SSF) opened fire on residents in the Kurdish city of Mahabad (Western Iran) late Saturday evening.
The incident took place in the city centre and Ash-Mam Ahmad district, where officials of the SSF were seen to be pursuing unknown people.
Rahmat Khakpour, a 23-year-old first year Electronics university student, was injured after being shot at as he was returning home.
Khakpour was shot in the right hand side of his neck and was taken to a local hospital, but doctors have not yet been able to remove the bullet from his neck.
The shooting caused panic among the citys population and no official responsibility has been taken by the SSF.
Less than a month ago Mahabad was placed under de facto martial law after three days of social unrest and numerous clashes between residents and the SSF, leaving one 13-year-old boy dead.
The 13-year-old boy was killed when an SSF agent hit him on the head with a truncheon, according to eye-witnesses.
Thousands of residents took to the streets to chant slogans against the ruling authorities, witnesses reported. SSF agents attacked the crowd but protesters, who were mainly youths, took part in hit-and-run clashes which spread to several districts of the city.
Government buildings and patrol cars were attacked after news spread of the death of the teenage boy. A number of SSF agents were beaten up by demonstrators.
Dozens of protesters were arrested during the unrest or in the house-to-house searches that security forces undertook in several neighbourhoods.
