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Behesht-e Zahra Cemetery, Section 41 — burial site of thousands of political prisoners executed in the 1980s. | Photo: Manfi, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wiki Commons)
Two-minute read
In a rare public confession, Mohammad-Javad Tajik, managing director of Tehran’s Behesht-e-Zahra Cemetery, has admitted that authorities bulldozed Section 41 — the burial site of thousands of political prisoners executed in the 1980s, many of them members and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
The revelation confirms what victims’ families and human rights defenders have long alleged: the clerical dictatorship is engaged in a systematic campaign to erase evidence of its atrocities, including the 1988 prison massacre in which an estimated 30,000 political prisoners were executed following a fatwa issued by regime founder Ruhollah Khomeini.
“Section 41, where some of the executed from the early revolution and members of the [PMOI] were buried — yes, we cleared it and turned it into a parking area,” Tajik confessed in a newly surfaced video.
For decades, Section 41 has been a symbolic battlefield between families seeking justice and authorities determined to bury both the bodies and the truth. Families have been surveilled, harassed, and arrested simply for holding memorials. Now, with the bulldozers at work, one of the last remaining traces of this dark chapter is being erased.
Montazeri’s Second Tape Exposes the #1988Massacre’s Rot at the Core of #Iran’s Theocracyhttps://t.co/twju6TSkEB
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) April 16, 2025
A Campaign to Destroy Evidence — and Control the Streets
The destruction of Section 41 is unfolding in parallel with an escalation of security measures across Iran. On August 18, Ali-Akbar Pourjamshidian, deputy interior minister for security affairs, admitted that the regime is arming the Basij and expanding checkpoints in anticipation of growing unrest.
“We, the security officials, must prepare ourselves for hard conditions,” Pourjamshidian said. “This includes arming Basij patrols, setting up inspection posts, and deploying our dear FARAJA forces in the streets to maintain control.”
He further revealed that during the 12-day war earlier this year, the regime’s Supreme National Security Council convened an emergency session on the first day and issued over 70 directives for internal suppression, all implemented immediately. Among them was the overnight evacuation of Evin Prison following strikes on Tehran — an extraordinary measure showing the regime’s expectation of potential uprisings amid conflict.
This candid admission underscores a broader strategy: while bulldozers erase evidence of past massacres, the security apparatus is arming itself for new ones.
Convicted #1988Massacre Perpetrator #HamidNoury Sparks Outrage with Provocative Cemetery Videohttps://t.co/ezI5T333Hp
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) March 26, 2025
The Fear Driving the Cover-Up
Analysts point to a common thread linking the destruction of Section 41 and Pourjamshidian’s security orders: fear. The regime sees reminders of its atrocities as a potential catalyst for future uprisings, especially as Iran faces growing instability, collapsing infrastructure, and escalating public anger over economic deprivation and political repression.
Most of those executed in the 1980s were affiliated with the PMOI, a movement the regime has tried — and failed — to crush. As protests over water shortages, power outages, wages, and basic freedoms intensify, Tehran fears that public awareness of its history of massacres will reignite support for organized resistance. By bulldozing graves, officials hope to sever that connection and control the narrative.
#Iran News: Regime Cleric Struggles to Justify #1988Massacre Amid Growing Public Scrutinyhttps://t.co/Hp32ZNgETp
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) April 15, 2025
Amnesty’s Warning and Calls for Accountability
Amnesty International criticized the destruction of Section 41, calling the graves “crime scenes” requiring forensic investigation and warning that Tehran is “concealing vital evidence of mass executions.”
While Amnesty’s statement amplifies global condemnation, the regime appears undeterred, betting that suppressing memory at home is as critical as controlling dissent in the streets. But victims’ families and rights advocates insist this strategy will fail, arguing that destroying evidence only deepens demands for justice.