Alireza Sabouri Miandehi -علیرضا صبوری میاندهیAlireza passed away more than two years after the post-election riots in Boston at an age of 22.
In the afternoon of 15 June, when he was just nineteen years of age, Alireza was trying to help rescue fellow protesters wounded in front of the Basij militia’s Ashura base, Battalion 117, when he was struck by a bullet and fell unconscious.
He was then taken to Ibn Sina hospital in west Tehran for treatment. Although he gained consciousness at the hospital, doctors were unable to fully remove the bullet from inside his skull. “The bullet exploded inside his head, a fragment left through an eyebrow, [but] the projectile stayed inside his skull while four shrapnel fragments were stuck. The projectile was extracted during a complicated and intense operation, but the fragments remained inside,” a family member told the Green Voice of Freedom on condition of anonymity.
Eleven months after he was first wounded, Alireza, accompanied by the family member, left Iran for Turkey to seek medical treatment through the UN office there. However, despite family pleas to relocate him to Germany where some of his relatives reside, the UN officials in Turkey rejected the family’s calls and instead decided to send Alireza to the United States. “We told them [the UN] time after time that he should be in Germany, close his relatives who could take care of him. But as usual, the UN completely ignored our calls and sent him to the US,” the family argued.
Nearly 900 days after being shot, Alireza Miandehi Sabouri died at the tender age of 22, 6,000 miles away from home in Boston, Massachusetts, where he was buried. “He passed away in a foreign land in silence and loneliness,” the family member continued. “He was treated unjustly both in Iran and abroad.
He was then taken to Ibn Sina hospital in west Tehran for treatment. Although he gained consciousness at the hospital, doctors were unable to fully remove the bullet from inside his skull. “The bullet exploded inside his head, a fragment left through an eyebrow, [but] the projectile stayed inside his skull while four shrapnel fragments were stuck. The projectile was extracted during a complicated and intense operation, but the fragments remained inside,” a family member told the Green Voice of Freedom on condition of anonymity.
Eleven months after he was first wounded, Alireza, accompanied by the family member, left Iran for Turkey to seek medical treatment through the UN office there. However, despite family pleas to relocate him to Germany where some of his relatives reside, the UN officials in Turkey rejected the family’s calls and instead decided to send Alireza to the United States. “We told them [the UN] time after time that he should be in Germany, close his relatives who could take care of him. But as usual, the UN completely ignored our calls and sent him to the US,” the family argued.
Nearly 900 days after being shot, Alireza Miandehi Sabouri died at the tender age of 22, 6,000 miles away from home in Boston, Massachusetts, where he was buried. “He passed away in a foreign land in silence and loneliness,” the family member continued. “He was treated unjustly both in Iran and abroad.
Source in English, in Persian.
"He passed away in a foreign land in silence and loneliness,”
ReplyDeletekhoda biomozesh valli magar amrika eshghe shomaha nist
ishon ke 19 salesh bode va ziad az khabari az donia nadashteh
valli sarane ke shoma iran ro mikhastan viran konan va dobare nokare esrail va amrika
omidvaram rozi biad ke sarane vatan foroshe shoma tak takeshon bemiran ke dige iran vatan forosh nadashteh bashe
Bozorgtarin vatanforoosh Khomeini bood ke dar khedmate engelis va faranse va hameye tarafdaraye ahmagho maghzeshoste aghabmoonde pedare hamaro dar ovorde keshvaro endakhte be badbakht. Ye zare tarikho behtar bekhoonid ki vatanforoosh bood.
ReplyDeleteAlireza Sabouri Miyandehi
ReplyDeleteWith much pain and regrets, we inform you that, on or about 19 November 2011, a young Iranian refugee, Mr. Alireza Sabouri Miyandehi, died in Boston, Massachusetts.
Based on request and wishes of his mother and family, his body will be flown to Germany and will be buried in Europe. There is an urgent need to gather and pay for preparation, transportation and burial services. The total expense is estimated to be $8,500. Please send an email to alireza.m.sabouri@gmail.com to inform us of your intention to help and send your tax-deductible contributions directly to:
Alireza Sabouri Funds
Attn: Marjean Perhot
Refugee and Immigration Services
Catholic Charities
275 West Broadway,
South Boston, MA 02127
It is recommended that each person send in $50 or more for this noble cause. We encourage you to inform others immediately upon receiving this message to let them know and ask if they wish to contribute. Your humanitarian help is appreciated.
A Short Background Info:
Nearly two years ago, Alireza was mistakenly wounded in Tehran, Iran. In January 2011, after much effort, he was finally admitted into the United State as a refugee and stayed in Boston. He was trying to learn English and rebuild his life and he spoke often about the loved ones he had to leave behind in Iran. At the time of his death, he was 23 years old and lived in an apartment he shared with 3 other refugees from Jordan, Iraq and Sierra Leone. Nearly 25 years ago, the mother lost her first son, Masoud Sabouri, as a soldier defending Iran in the Iran-Iraq war.
Upon hearing of this sad news, many Iranians in Massachusetts and neighboring states are upset about the fact that they were not aware of his presence and needs while he was alive and living in Boston. As a refugee, he was helped, housed and looked after by Refugee and Immigration Services Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Boston, i.e. www.ccab.org
Memorial Services
As a humanitarian gesture, a memorial service will be held this Saturday:
Where: Brookhouse Function Hall
99 Pond Ave.
Brookline, MA 02445
Date: Saturday 10 December 2011
Time: 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm.
His uncle, Mr. Siamak Aghabeik, is due to arrive in Boston from Germany to attend to remaining issues, receive his nephew’s body and arrange for the transportation to Germany. He will attend the memorial services for Alireza on Saturday at Brookhouse. Your presence is encouraged and appreciated by his mother and family.