Daijiworld Media Network – Tehran
Tehran, Sep 6: A section of Tehran’s largest cemetery, Behesht-e Zahra, known as the burial site of thousands executed after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, is being paved to create a parking lot. Lot 41, where dissidents, monarchists, and communists were buried, has faced years of surveillance and vandalism, with grave markers destroyed.
Satellite images show trucks and asphalt on site. Tehran’s deputy mayor called the project “precise and smart,” describing those buried as “hypocrites of the early revolution.” Rights activists condemned the move, highlighting that families were not consulted. Researchers estimate 5,000–7,000 people may have been buried in the lot.
The development coincides with authorities preparing burial space for victims of the recent Iran-Israel conflict and reflects a continuing pattern of targeting politically sensitive graves.