Most fires in western Iran are brought under control by voluntary workers, usually environmental activists themselves – who are often put in perilous situations.
Parastu Khedri, an environmental activist told Rudaw on Sunday that a team of four from Zhiway Pawa Society, a Kurdish non-governmental organization working to raise environmental consciousness across Iran, accompanied by other independent environmentalists, headed to Marakhel mountain in the Hawraman Region’s Paveh city to put out a fire.
“While attempting to control the fire on the Marakhel mountain, two activists from the Zhiway organization lost their lives,” Khedri said.
Mukhtar Khandani, the spokesperson for Zhiway Pawa Society, as well as Bilal Ameni, another environmental activist working for the society, are among those who died in Sunday’s fire, according to Khedri.
Yasin Karimi, is the third environmental activist who lost his life in the incident after being severely wounded, Khedri confirmed to Rudaw.
Rudaw English spoke with Mukhtar Khandani earlier in June regarding the wildfires raging through western Iran. He said that nearly 300 acres of mountainside land around the western Iranian city of Paveh had been destroyed in the blazes at that point in time.
This is not the first time activists from the Zhiway Pawa Society have fallen victim to the flames of the mountainside fires. Khandani confirmed to Rudaw English on June 6 that members have suffered from “injuries” while attempting to control the wildfires.
Four environmental activists died in summer 2018 after trying to put out fires in Mariwan city, caused by Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) bombarding suspected targets of opposition Kurdish armed groups hiding in the area, according to Hengaw, a leading Kurdish human rights organization which documents abuses in Iran’s Kurdish areas.
