Mother Behkish

Mother Omolbanin (Nayereh) Jalali Mohajr(Mother Behkish)

Mother Omolbanin Jalali Mohajer, Mother Behkish, was born in Mashhad on 7 Esfand 1299 (26 February 1921) and died in her own home in Tehran at the age of 94 years on 13 Dey 1394 (03 Jan. 2016). Five children of mother  Behkish, i.e., Zahra Behkish, Mahmoud Behkish, Mohammadreza Behkish, Mohsen Behkish and Mohammad Ali Behkish, and her son-in-law Siamak Assadian, were all killed by the Islamic regime in the 1360s (1980s).

Mother Behkish together with her husband Ali Asghar Behkish, born in Tehran in 1294 (1915), were forced to leave Mashhad secretly due to the pressure put on them by the Islamic regime because of their children, and came to Karaj to settled down there. However, the harassment and persecution faced by mother Behkish and her husband did not cease after the leaving of Mashhad. With the arrest of their children, they started knocking prison doors in order to obtain news about them. However, the reply given to them was nothing but humiliation, contempt and insults.  

Mother Behkish spent a large part of her life in front of prison doors and in graveyards in order to find her loved ones. The security apparatus of the Islamic regime repeatedly summoned mother Behkish for her efforts to seek justice and interrogated her. Mother Behkish and her husband Ali Asghar Behkish never had any peace and the Islamic regime’s harassment and persecution continued until the last moments of their lives.

Mother Behkish was a member of the Khavaran Mothers and a member of the families of those executed in the 1360s (1980s), who with their resistance and steadfastness, whether at the time their children were under torture in the prisons or at the time when the regime massacred them and secretly buried them in mass graves away from the eyes of their families, always nurtured the tree of justice-seeking in all those years. Mother Behkish and other mothers with their struggle, resistance and steadfastness transformed Khavaran into a pillar of justice-seeking for those freedom-fighters who were massacre by the Islamic regime in 1360s (1980s).

Zahra Behkish

Zahra Behkish, daughter of Omolbanin Jalali Mehr and Ali Asghar Behkish, was born in Hamadan in 1325 (1946). Zahra had a Master’s Degree in Physics and was a teacher. She was fired by the Education Department In 1354 (1975) on grounds of her political activities. She was married and Siamak Assadian was her life partner. She was persecuted by the Savak, the Shah’s Intelligence and Security Organization in the spring of 1356 (1977) on account of her activities against the Shah’s rule. From that time onwards she went underground. Zahra joined the Organisation of Iranian People´s Fadai Guerrillas in early 1356 (1977) and following the branching out of the Organization in 1359 (1980), she joined its minority faction. Zahran Behkish was one of the outstanding cadres of the Organisation of Iranian People´s Fadai Guerrillas (minority faction). Zahra was arrested in her residential apartment in Tehran on the morning of 03 Shahrivar 1362 (25 Aug. 1983), after leaving the house of her parents in Karaj. Zahra, at the time of her arrest, attempted to commit suicide by taking a cyanide pill.  However, the Islamic regime’s agents kept her alive and took her to the joint Committee Moshtarak Prison. They killed her under torture on the very first day. According to government’s agents, Zahra was buried in Khavarn but her family members were kept unaware of the place of her burial.

Mahmoud Behkish

Mahmoud Behkish, son of Omolbanin Jalali Mohajer and Ali Asghar Behkish, was born in Mashhad in 1330 (1951). He was married and had a daughter. Mahmoud was in charge of quality-control at the Plasco plant in Tehran. He was imprisoned for two months in 1350 (1971) for studying the conditions of villages in the south of Khorassan. Mahmoud was arrested by SAVAK in Azar 1352 (Nov. – Dec. 1973) for organizing student strikes in Mashhad and sentenced to one-year imprisonment. He was arrested once again in Aban 1355 (Oct. – Nov. 1976) for political activities against the Shah’s regime and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Mahmoud was released from the prison together with a group of other political prisoners on 26 Dey 1357 (16 Jan. 1979).

Mahmoud was arrested by the Islamic regime on 03 Shahrivar 1362 (25 Aug. 1983), when he had gone to his parents’ house in Karaj to visit them, because of his political activities related to Organization of People´s Fadai Guerrillas (majority faction) and was sentenced to ten years of imprisonment. The Islamic regimed hanged Mahmoud in Gohardasht Prison on 06 Sharivar 1367 (28 Aug. 1988) during the massacre of political prisoners in Gohardasht Prison and buried him, together with hundreds of other political prisoners in a mass grave in Khavaran.

Mohammadreza Behkish

 Mohammadreza Behkish, son of Omolbanin Jalali Mohajer and Ali Asghar Behkish, was born in Mashhad in 1334 (1955). He was a student of Institute of Technology in Mashhad, married, and father of a child. Mohammadreza, because of his political activities against the Shah’s regime, was pursued by the SAVAK, the secret police of the Shah in Aban 1355 (Oct. – Nov. 1976). Thereafter he went underground. Mohammadreza joined the Organisation of Iranian People´s Fadai Guerrillas  in 1976. Mohammadreza was among those who, after the splitting of this organization in Khordad 1359 (May – June 1980), formed the Minorty Faction. He was a member of the central committee of the Organisation of Iranian People´s Fadai Guerrillas (minority). The Islamic regime’s security agents killed Mohammadreza together with his organizational friend Jafar Panjeh Shahi (Khashayar) on 24 Esfand 1360 (15 March 1982) when they attacked the Organization’s printing press. Place of his and Jafar’s burial is not known.

Mohsen Behkish

Mohsen Behkish, son of Omolbanin Jalali Mohajer and Ali Asghar Behkish, was born in Mashhad in 1341 (1962). He held a high school diploma and was unmarried. Mohsen, while he was no more than nineteen years old, was pursued in the summer of 1360 (1981) by the Islamic regime’s security agents because of his political activities with the Organization of People´s Fadai Guerrillas, and was forced to leave his birthplace. Mohsen was arrested on 03 Shahrivar 1362 (25 Aug. 1983) in the house of his parents where he also lived. Initially he was taken to the joint committee’s (Towhid) prison where he was tortured in the extreme. Then he was taken to the Sepah Pasdaran’ detention centre in Mashhad where he was interrogated and tortured again. The Islamic regime sentenced Mohsen to death in 1363 (1984). He was executed by the firing squad on 24 Ordibehesht 1364 (15 May 1985) in Evin Prison. His place of burial is not known.

Mohammadali Behkish

Mohammadali Behkish, son of Omolbanin Jalali Mohajer and Ali Asghar Behkish, was born in Mashhad in 1343 (1964). He was a High School graduate. Mohammadali, while he was no more than 17 years old, was arrested by the Islamic regime’s security agents in relation to his political activities with the Organization of People´s Fadai Guerrillas (minority) and was forced to abandon the city of his birthplace. The Islamic regime arrested Mohammadali in Tehran on 02 Shahrivar 1362 (24 Aug. 1983) and severely tortured him at the Joint Committee (Towhid). He was taken to his parents’ house on 03 Shahrivar 1362 (25 Aug. 1983) after torture, while his legs were bandaged. The Islamic regime hanged him in Gohardasht Prison on 5th or 6th of Shahrivar 1367 (27-28 Aug. 1988) during the massacre of political prisoners and buried him in a mass grave in Khavaran.

Siamak Assadian

  • Professor Maurice Copithorne(Canada)President of the Iran Tribunal Truth Commission Professor Copithorne’s impressive career spans six decades, during which he specialized in international law. After being called to the BC Bar in 1956, Professor Copithorne joined the Canadian Foreign Service. He retired from the Foreign Service in 1986 to take a visiting professorship position with the UBC Faculty of Law and has been with the Faculty ever since. In addition to teaching, he has held a variety of external appointments including United Nations Special Representative on the Human Rights Situation in Iran (1995-2002). Copithorne has received several awards and honours including being appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1981, the Great Trekker Award from the University of British Columbia Alma Mater Society in 1997, and the Renata Shearer Award for “outstanding contributions to human rights” in 2000.
    Siamak Asssadian

Siamak Assadian, husband of Zahra Behkish and son-in-law of mother Behkish (Omolbanin Jalali Mohajer) and Ali Asghar Behkish, was born in 1334 (1955) in Khorramabad, District Piranvand (former Cheghalvandi), village of Gorz Gol. He completed his primary school education in the village and high school education in Khorramabad. At the age of 17, he became acquainted with Houshang Azami Lorestani, Ahmad Khorramabadi and Mahmoud Khorramabadi, the pioneers of armed struggle in the region of Lorestan, and believed in Marxism. In 1353 (1974), he left for the mountains of Lorestan in order to start armed struggle together with other members of the group. Siamak Assadian came to Tehran after some time and joined the Organisation of People´s Fadaii Guerrillas and assumed responsibility in its military section. He remained active for a long time under the supervision of Hamid Ashraf. During this period Siamak Assadian participated in many military operations and assumed command of some of them.

Siamak was among the members of the Organisation of People´s Fadaii Guerrillas, who, after its split in Khordad 1359 (1980), formed its minority faction. Siamak was a member of Central Committee of the Organisation of People´s Fadaii Guerrillas (minority). He was killed in Shahrivar 1360 (Aug. – Sep. 1981) together with two other fellow fighters of the organisation close to the City of Amol in a conflict with the agents of the Islamic regime.