Milan Derakhshan

Milan Derakhshan (June 4, 1993 – October 9, 2022)

Milan Derakhshan was a young man from the village of Kelachah Aval, near Khomam in Rasht. He was tall, powerfully built, and hardworking, earning his living through freight and delivery work. After enduring many hardships, he managed to buy a vehicle so he could support his family. He was the father of a little girl named Raha and deeply loved both his daughter and life itself. But life had never been easy for him. He had lost his father fourteen years earlier, and his mother had spent years working labor jobs to raise her children. From a young age, Milan worked to help support the family and carried the responsibility of providing for his wife, daughter, and mother.
The debts from buying his vehicle eventually led to his imprisonment in Lakan Prison in Rasht. He was held in Ward 8 alongside prisoners such as Mehrgan Zahmatkesh and Mehrzad Behrouz. Because of his strong physique and fearless personality, he was respected and influential among the inmates. Only two days remained before his scheduled release, but the nearness of freedom did not make him stay silent in the face of injustice.
On October 9, 2022, during the height of Iran’s nationwide protests, a bloody confrontation unfolded inside Lakan Prison. Prisoners protesting the torture and mistreatment of detained teenagers became involved in clashes with prison forces. Government agents used tear gas and live ammunition to suppress the inmates. The prison wards filled with smoke and suffocation, leaving prisoners trapped with no way out.
On that terrifying night, Milan Derakhshan stood at the front. Using his physical strength, he tried to create an escape route for the prisoners. With the help of a cart, he broke open the ward door so inmates trapped among the smoke and tear gas could get out. His courage and resistance only intensified the rage of the security forces. According to accounts from his family and those close to him, officers sprayed tear gas directly into his face and mouth at close range before opening fire on him. Even after he fell to the ground, they reportedly beat him severely with batons and crushed his legs.
When Milan’s body was returned to his family, there were signs of five bullet wounds, bruises, and severe injuries across his body. Authorities considered him one of the main figures behind the prison uprising. For this reason, his family was not even allowed to put up memorial banners or hold ceremonies freely, and they were pressured into removing his photos and tributes from social media.
Milan possessed not only a powerful body, but also a rebellious and freedom-seeking spirit. The words he left on his Instagram page reflected his character clearly:
“If I am truly myself, I will set their forest on fire if even a single leaf falls from my lone tree.”
And the sentence that seemed to define his entire life:
“Never, nowhere, at no time, be afraid of anything.”
In the end, Milan died the same way he had lived — standing fearless. In the final days of his life, he put aside his own freedom in order to stand beside others.