Ramin Karami

Ramin Karami (October 12, 1989 – October 12, 2022)

Ramin Karami was a 31-year-old man from Sarpol-e Zahab who lived in Kermanshah. During the nationwide protests of October 2022, which erupted after the killing of Jina (Mahsa) Amini, he was among the many young protesters who took part in demonstrations in the streets of Kermanshah. Those days were marked by widespread unrest across Iran and a violent crackdown by government security forces.
On the evening of Wednesday, October 12, 2022, Ramin Karami was reportedly shot by government security forces during protests in Kermanshah and severely wounded. From that night on, his family lost all contact with him. He disappeared, and no official institution provided information about where he had been taken, his medical condition, or the hospital where he was allegedly being treated.
According to relatives, the family spent days in fear and uncertainty, desperately searching for news of him without knowing whether he was alive or dead.
Finally, on Thursday, October 20, 2022, security authorities contacted the family and told them to come to Kermanshah to collect Ramin’s body. According to sources close to the family, officials admitted that he had been shot during the protests on October 12 and had died after several days in hospital due to the severity of his injuries.
At the same time, the family was reportedly subjected to intense pressure and threats. According to accounts from relatives, security forces warned them that if they publicly stated that Ramin had been killed by gunfire, or if the news reached the media, they would face a massive financial penalty of around 700 million tomans. The family was also forced to sign a written commitment stating that the cause of death had been a “stroke.” Only after giving this commitment was Ramin’s body returned to them.
Family members later said that many crucial questions remained unanswered. They never learned exactly where he had been shot, which hospital he had been taken to, or what had happened to him during the days he was missing.
Ramin Karami was buried on October 20, 2022, in the “Kol Davood” cemetery in Sarpol-e Zahab. According to reports, the burial took place under heavy security presence, with security agents filming mourners and monitoring the ceremony. The family and relatives were also warned not to speak to the media.
Ramin Karami’s name later became one of many associated with the victims of the 2022 protests in Iran — protesters who were killed during the government’s violent suppression of demonstrations. For his family and many people in the region, his story became a painful symbol of a period in which protests were met with bullets, and grieving families were threatened for speaking openly about how their loved ones died.