A 30-year-old man tragically took the lives of 12 of his relatives on Saturday, marking Iran’s deadliest family shooting in recent memory.
The assailant, whose identity has not been disclosed, reportedly used a Kalashnikov assault rifle in the massacre, as stated by Ebrahim Hamidi, the head of the justice department in Kerman province, Iran. The victims included his father and brother, leaving the country in a state of disbelief.
Such incidents are highly unusual in Iran due to the country’s stringent firearms control regulations. The law generally permits Iranians to own only hunting rifles, a rule that is strictly enforced.
While Iran has seen shootings involving family members in the past, none have been as lethal in recent decades. In 2022, a former employee of a state-owned financial conglomerate shot and killed three people and wounded five others at his previous workplace in the country’s west before turning the gun on himself.
In a separate incident in 2016, a 26-year-old man in southern Iran murdered 10 of his family members in a rural region.
Analysts suggest that escalating violence may be linked to the country’s worsening economic situation, which has been further strained by international sanctions. This has led to skyrocketing inflation and rising unemployment, creating a tense atmosphere that could potentially see an increase in such incidents.
In the wake of this tragic event, Iran must confront the underlying issues that may be contributing to such violence and take measures to prevent illegal access to weapons. Furthermore, the incident has brought the regulation of firearms, particularly in rural areas where hunting rifles are more prevalent, into sharper focus.
