The grieving relatives of a young Iranian woman killed during anti-regime protests have revealed the horrific ordeal they faced to recover her body, including searching through piles of bloody corpses and allegedly paying bribes to authorities.
A Desperate Search in an Overflowing Morgue
Robina Aminian, a 23-year-old fashion student at Tehran's Shariati Technical and Vocational College for Girls, was killed on January 8. Her family believes she was shot in the back of the head by Iranian security forces while attending a protest after dark. Upon hearing the news, her mother, Amina, travelled from their home city of Kermanshah to the capital Tehran.
There, she was forced to enter an overflowing mortuary to find her daughter's body among the dead. Speaking from Oslo, Robina's uncle, Nezar Minoei, stated that authorities have been demanding money to release corpses. "She actually stole the body," he said, explaining how the family hurriedly removed it, fearing guards would block them.
A Harrowing Journey to a Secret Burial
The family's trauma did not end there. They drove Robina's body 230 miles back to Kermanshah, only to find their home surrounded by security forces. In a desperate bid to ensure she received a burial, they turned their car around, dug a pit by the side of the road, and interred Robina in an unmarked grave.
This practice of demanding payment is not isolated. The New York-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran reports receiving multiple accounts of intelligence forces extorting money from families for the return of protesters' bodies, calling it "a well-known, standard practice" to intimidate them into silence. Other families have reported being coerced into signing false documents declaring their dead relatives were security force members.
A Rising Death Toll and Official Denials
Iranian state television has broadcast statements denying these allegations, claiming mortuary and burial services are provided free of charge. However, activists now estimate that at least 3,090 people have been killed since the protests began in late December 2025, initially over economic issues before escalating into a broader movement against the authoritarian regime.
Robina's family insist she was not a political activist but a young woman seeking a brighter future. "She wanted a bright future for herself. But unfortunately, the future has been stolen from her," her uncle Nezar said. Relatives abroad have now lost contact with the family inside Iran, raising further concerns for their safety.
