Reza Azimzadeh

Their life

Reza Azimzadeh was a young Iranian protester and athlete from Malekshahi County in Ilam Province, Iran, who took part in nationwide demonstrations in early January 2026. He and other protestors were reportedly demanding basic rights and opposing state policies when security forces opened fire on the crowd. Azimzadeh became one of the early confirmed fatalities in the widespread violent crackdown by Iranian security forces during protests that erupted across the country starting in late December 2025.

Reza Azimzadeh was identified by multiple rights groups and independent sources as a 27-year-old Kurdish protester and bodybuilder who lived in Malekshahi in Ilam Province, in western Iran. The protests were triggered by steep economic hardship and intensified into broader anti‑government demonstrations. On 3 January 2026, protestors in Malekshahi marched toward a Basij (paramilitary) base when security forces, including members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), opened fire on the unarmed crowd. Azimzadeh was among those hit by live ammunition or other lethal projectiles and died on the scene or shortly thereafter. His death was publicly noted in human rights documentation and press coverage.

How they died

Reza Azimzadeh was a young, unmarried protester from Malekshahi, Iran, killed by security forces’ gunfire on 3 January 2026 while participating in anti‑government protests.

Reza Azimzadeh was killed by gunfire from Iranian security forces — reportedly by live ammunition or similar weapons — when the IRGC opened fire on a group of largely unarmed protestors. Multiple independent rights organizations documented that he died from direct shooting injuries sustained during the confrontation in Malekshahi.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Reza Azimzadeh, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources