Ahwaz, Padadshahr

The mass graves of Ahwaz are two large trenches covered with cement, situated three kilometres east of Behesht Abad Cemetery on a vacant plot of land, at the end of Padadshahr’s Phase Two area. The families of some 1988 prisoner massacre victims believe that the corpses of at least 44 political prisoners, killed during the massacre, are buried at this site.

In the summer of 1988, thousands of political prisoners from all over Iran were held incommunicado before being executed in secret. In Ahwaz, the corpses of executed prisoners were dumped into channels which were dug overnight, and the authorities immediately covered the mass graves with cement.

These mass graves had been concealed under piles of rubbish and construction debris for over a decade. In July 2018, the Ahwaz Municipality’s officials destroyed the site, under the pretence of a plan to build more roads and green spaces.