Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s intelligence organization has secretly buried the body of an exiled Iranian journalist whose coffin was shipped to Iran for family burial. 

According to information obtained by Iran International, Reza Haqiqatnejad was buried in an area far from his hometown in the southern Fars province without the permission of his family. The reason for the secret burial without any funeral service is not clear since he was not a member of any opposition group. The only explanation can be an IRGC attempt at revenge since he was a top analyst who exposed the regime’s contradictions and weaknesses.

The IRGC had taken away Haqiqatnejad’s body after his coffin arrived in Iran, preventing his burial in his hometown of Shiraz. 

In a video message released on social media, the deceased journalist’s elderly mother had pleaded with authorities to let her see and bury his son. Haqiqatnejad, 45, passed away in Berlin after six months of battling cancer. He died on October 17 and his body was repatriated to Iran for burial on October 25.

He worked for Radio Farda, a Persian broadcaster in Prague financed by the US Congress.

His family had made arrangements for burial at a cemetery in Shiraz and acquired all the relevant permits but according to his relatives and friends, security forces have been pressuring the family to agree to his burial in a cemetery outside the city.

The abduction of his body drew numerous reactions by the public, who said the Islamic Republic is even afraid of his dead body.