On Friday, February 14, 2025, students at the University of Tehran protested the brutal murder of Amir Mohammad Khaleqi, a graduate student in management. The protest, which began in the University of Tehran dormitory, quickly spread to the university and surrounding streets.
The protesting students chanted the following slogans of defiance against the regime, including “Students will die, but will not accept humiliation.” They also slammed regime officials who have facilitated the murder and were not taking action to investigate the murder with slogans such as “Incompetent official, resign, resign.” They also defied security forces who were sent to suppress the protests by chanting “Security, open the door,” and “Shame on you! Shame on you!” And they called on other students to join the protests with the slogan: “We don’t want spectators, join us.”
Students at Tehran University are calling for regime officials to resign over the murder of a student by security forces. "We will not live in disgrace," the students chant.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/HhL0ESo8lC
— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) February 14, 2025
The student uprising took place while the security and repressive forces of the regime tried to suppress the students with full violence. Reports indicate that at least two students have been arrested and another student has suffered a broken nose.
According to the official announcement of the University of Tehran, Amir Mohammad Khaleqi lost his life outside the university environment and in the area of Gisha Bridge. However, an audio file of a conversation between Tehran’s police officers, which has been published in cyberspace, shows that the murder took place during a chase. After stealing the student’s belongings, the attackers killed him with a fatal knife wound.
The announcement of the University of Tehran and the media and regime agents indicate an attempt to downplay this crime and evade responsibility. In a statement issued immediately after the news of the murder, the university emphasized more than anything else that the incident took place “a long distance from the university dormitory.” This is despite the fact that the students were eyewitnesses to the incident, and the videos published in cyberspace also show that the incident took place near the university and in a place where students had repeatedly warned about its insecurity.
More footage of protests by students at Tehran University. Students are chanting: "Students are aware and despise tyranny."#IranProtestspic.twitter.com/n7QyTo3HHW
— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) February 16, 2025
One of the protesting students emphasized in his speech at the rally on Friday, “From the very beginning, the university officials tried to absolve themselves of responsibility for this tragedy by publishing false information. We have repeatedly warned about the insecurity around the university, but the authorities have preferred to monitor us instead of ensuring the safety of the students.”
The government, which is chronically afraid of the formation of uprising sparks and its spread to the explosive society of Iran, tried to resolve the issue with superficial and propaganda measures and relate it to “armed robbers” and asked the students not to politicize their demands; at the same time, it warned against the exploitation of this situation by the PMOI.
On February 15, an article in the state-run Mashregh News claimed, “The clear and explicit demand of the students was quickly diverted from its original path. The rally, which could have been an opportunity to receive transparent answers from the authorities, turned into statements that had nothing to do with security. Suddenly, the discussion shifted from providing security for student routes to historical and political issues, from the university dormitory and the events of July 9, 1999 (18 Tir), to issues that had nothing to do with this murder.”
The same article claimed that it is not clear whether those who participated in the student protest are students.
February 16—Tehran, Iran
Students of Tarbiat Modares University hold protest rally in solidarity with students of Tehran University, protsting the murder of a student by security forces.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/Nm3XBsKf35— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) February 16, 2025
In addition, it threatened the students that such protests would make the situation more unsafe for them:
“When a specific request is diverted to wrong paths, not only is it less likely to be realized, but it may even have the opposite effect, and such an atmosphere itself intensifies insecurity. If the security of student routes has been ignored so far, now there is a danger that these margins will make conditions more difficult for students.”
The government’s fear of the student protest turning into an uprising and overthrow is evident in the materials it publishes in its media about the PMOI.
“The important point is that while some students are looking for some demands regarding this issue, a Telegram channel close to the [PMOI] is trying to disrupt the emotional atmosphere of the students by creating a toxic atmosphere.” (Ibid.)
The student protest against the murder of Amir Mohammad Khaleqi, a student of Tehran University, continued for the second day and must continue.
As Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), emphasized in her message on X, “The perpetrators of this insecurity are either the Revolutionary Guards and suppressive forces themselves, or the result of the regime’s anti-people policies, which prioritize maintaining its power through the harshest oppression, with no regard for the safety or welfare of the people… Indeed, the university is the fortress of freedom and must fulfill its historic role.”
Salutes to the students of the University of Tehran who, in protest against the brutal murder of one of their peers, raised their voices with the powerful chant, "A student dies, but does not accept humiliation." The perpetrators of this insecurity are either the Revolutionary…
— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) February 14, 2025
The murder of Amir Mohammad Khaleqi is only one of the dozens of crimes that have occurred in the shadow of the incompetence and systematic suppression of the mullahs’ regime. The students have emphasized in their statements that the protest will continue.
The demonstrations of the students of Tehran University in reaction to the murder of Amir Mohammad Khaleqi once again showed that the young generation of Iran will not give in to oppression and injustice and is ready to rise up to change their destiny and their society.