Two Kurdish citizens lost their lives after being directly shot by forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran during popular protests in the cities of Mashhad and Esfarayen.
According to Kolbarnews, on the evening of Thursday, January 8, 2026, Jalil Milanouei, a Kurdish citizen from Esferain County in North Khorasan Province, was directly shot by government forces during popular protests in the city and was killed.
At the same time on the same night, Hossein Zabihzadeh, a 41-year-old Kurdish citizen, lost his life after being directly shot by government forces during nationwide protests in the Noudeh neighborhood of Mashhad. This citizen was targeted in the head with a military weapon.
Based on the information obtained, the identities of these two citizens were confirmed after one week.
With these two cases included, the identities of seven Kurdish citizens who were killed during nationwide protests in Razavi Khorasan and North Khorasan provinces have so far been confirmed.
