On Friday and Saturday, February 14 and 15, 2025, students at the University of Tehran dormitory gathered to protest the killing of their fellow student, Amir Mohammad Khaleghi, and the lack of security on campus. The protests were met with violence as security forces and plainclothes agents attacked the demonstrators, leading to clashes and assaults on students.
In response to these events, University of Tehran students declared Sunday, February 16, as a “Day of Mourning for the University of Tehran.” In their statement, they said:
“The pain of losing our fellow student was still fresh when the university officials, as usual, submitted to the orders of security forces and plainclothes agents, allowing them to violate the university’s sanctuary, rubbing salt into the wounds of our mourning community.”
Solidarity Message from Amirhossein Moradi and Ali Younesi
Amirhossein Moradi and Ali Younesi, two distinguished students imprisoned in Evin Prison, released a statement on February 16, 2025, expressing their condolences to the family of Amir Mohammad Khaleghi and urging all students across Iran to stand in solidarity with the protesting students of the University of Tehran.
In their message, they wrote:
“Once again, grief, once again the loss of a friend and fellow student, once again a sorrow that weighs heavily on our hearts. To the family of Amir Mohammad Khaleghi and the students of the University of Tehran, we share in your pain and learn from you how to transform this sorrow into anger and how to direct this anger at the root cause of this killing.”
They also highlighted the history of student oppression, from the incident on December 7, 1953, to the bloody crackdown at Tehran University in July 1999, and the recent events, emphasizing that this cycle of violence continues. They argued that the only way to end it is through student unity and resistance.
In their statement, Moradi and Younesi called on students nationwide to stand together and support the University of Tehran students. They wrote:
“Students across the country, the time to rise is now. Let us all stand together with the University of Tehran. We neither forgive nor forget the murder of Amir Mohammad. The blood that has been shed cannot be washed away.”
Full Statement by Amirhossein Moradi and Ali Younesi
Once again, grief, once again the loss of a friend and fellow student, once again a sorrow that weighs heavily on our hearts. To the family of Amir Mohammad Khaleghi and the students of the University of Tehran, we share in your pain and learn from you how to transform this sorrow into anger and how to direct this anger at the root cause of this killing.
It seems that taking the lives of students is intertwined with the nature of dictatorships. From December 7, 1953, to the bloody crackdown at Tehran University in July 1999, the downing of the Ukrainian plane, and today Amir Mohammad. The response has always been the same: uprisings, resistance, and the eradication of the roots of all insecurity and killings.
Students across the country, the time to rise is now. Let us all stand together with the University of Tehran.
We neither forgive nor forget the murder of Amir Mohammad.
The blood that has been shed cannot be washed away.
Amirhossein Moradi and Ali Younesi
February 16, 2025 – Evin Prison
