Conflict with SAVAK

After the complete separation from Mohsen Tarighat in the winter of 1976, I increased my contacts with Meysam and his friends. I had to be more careful about myself in this new condition. So, I always had cyanide capsule and Colt Pistol 7.65mm along with me. I would never put away my Colt even when I was asleep. I would put it under my pillow.

1976 reached with all its worries and anxieties.  I was worried about betray of Tarighat and Manouchehri’s threat that he would kill me in a street fight and being far from Fatima. The spring of that year was particular one. The sky would get dark every now and then and water in rivers was cold and frozen. There was still lot of snow on top of the mountains around Tehran. The weather was a bit cold and cool. I would still wear my winter coat.

It was rule that all guerrillas like me who were always in danger, had to carry gun with themselves. So, I always had a gun on me and I think Meysam had one either. Since most of the time we were out, we had to have our lunch outside and it was not possible to have it anywhere; most of the restaurants would use frozen imported meats and Imam had banned using these meats. So, it was a problem and we had to find place that we could be sure about its food.

I had an appointment with Meysam at 12:30 Thursday 26^th April 1976 in Ghaen Alley near Baharestan Square. I met him there and we walked toward Zhaleh (Mujahedin) Street. Then we entered an alley on the eastern side of Shafa Yahyaian Hospital and walked toward Refah High School. There was a big vacant lot on the western side of Refah High School. We walked through that lot to go to a Kebab Shop in an alley around there. While we were talking about the appointment we had with the late Andarzgou on the next Sunday, I noticed it was suspicious around there and it was unnatural. I did not expect to see that much people there walking around at noon. They were walking around us by a distance. I looked around again. My suspicion changed to sureness.

 Meysam asked: “What’s up Ahmad?” I said: “Just do not look back! Check you right side! Two people are following us; on the left side either. I think we are surrounded!” He checked and said: “Yes, we are entrapped. Here was never like this; Ahmad! What should we do?” I said: “It’s over; they are many. Just walk normally! Not fast, not low! Take normal steps! The only way we have is to reach the alley’s entrance (that alley would open into Eynoddoleh Street). This alley is narrow and there we can run away fast and save our lives.”

We continued our walking. Somebody called from behind: “Sir! Sir! … Sir!” I said: “Meysam, do not listen and pretend you have not heard.” Then I asked him if he was armed or not. He said: “No! But I have a triggered knife tied on my foot.” I joked: “And its trigger is yourself, is not it?!” Meysam smiled calmly and said: “Ahmad! We are in a big trouble.” I said: “If we reach to the alley’s entrance then we can go into Eynoddoleh Street fast. There I would run to left and you to right. You go to Sarcheshmeh crossroads and I go to Eynoddoleh Street. Our appointment would be at 8 o’clock at night. If each of us did not come, it shows the other one is arrested or killed.”

I slowly opened my coat and got ready to fight. We were reaching to the alley’s entrance. A Hunter began moving fast. It braked harshly at the entrance of the ally on asphalt.  We were still on the soils. I said: “Meysam, do not pay attention. Go on your own way. I start to fight and you should run with your all might and escape.” We were about five meters to that Hunter that a strong tall big man came out of the car and while having a UZI machine gun moved behind the front of the car and but that UZ on its hood and ready to shoot and then with a hooligan-like accent said: “Hey man! Hands up!”

The countdown began. With that near gap I thought that it was over for us. We could not breathe and our foreheads were wet of sweat. I could hear the sound guns becoming ready to shoot by the people surrounding us. I saw they were getting closer. There was no hope. Meanwhile I saw Meysam was rising his hands up. I did not know what to do. I decided to get involved a fight. I thought: “I would shoot or would be shot! If they shoot, I would swallow the cyanide capsule hanging my neck.”

The SAVAKI agent repeated: “I said hands up!” I moved my hands up slowly. They felt that I was going to surrender. While I was moving my hands up, with an incredible speed, I moved my right hand in my coat and took out my gun and shot three bullets. I heard later one of them had hit that Hunter’s triangle window, one to its hood and the last one was aimless. After my shooting they laid down on the ground and I began running immediately and entered the alley. I was about 10 meters from the Hunter that I heard the sound of a spray of bullets; I suddenly felt nothing was under my feet. I lost my balance. Meanwhile the second spray of bullets was heard and I fell down hardly by my head. It seemed when seeing that I was escaping, the damned Manouchehri who was inside the car would spray bullets on my lower part of body by UZI. My left leg was shot over my knee. In the second spray my bottom was shot from the right side. When I fell down my gun was thrown about three meters in front of me. I clearly felt that my soul was going out of my body. Suddenly I heard the shouts of a woman who changed my position to the previous form. It seemed that I was getting a new life. That woman was still shouting and saying: “You killed! You killed a young of people!!...” Meanwhile I thought: “Ok. I am alive, so, Meysam should have been killed.” It was interesting that the agents were frightened to get near to bloody body. They thought I had a bomb in my right hand under my body.

I felt great weakness. I told my Shahadatain [holy sentences that a Muslim should say before death]. An agent dared to get closer and then moved my body to the other side to check if I had something in my hand. It was crowded around me. I think by hearing the sound of fired bullets, the students of Refah High School had come out of the school and gathered around the location of that accident. An agent was trying to scatter the crowd. The agent who had come near to me checked the clothes around my stomach. I did not understand anything more and fainted. They would take and carry me in the back of the car to the hospital. Inside the car I woke up of the up and downs. I never thought that I would survive. I was thanking God that finally I was going to die. I was feeling free and told my Shahadatain several times. At these moments that I was there in the back of the car half-fainted I thought of swallowing my cyanide capsule hanging from my neck. I tried to move my hand but I found out they had tied my hands from back.

I fainted again. It seemed my body was badly bleeding and I would faint again and again. They took me to Bazargani Hospital. My shoes had stick to my feet because the blood. The bullets had entered my bone and by any move I would faint.

They took me to a room to be treated. A young bearded physician came beside my bed. He checked my blood pressure and said and my heart was beating correctly. My blood pressure was 13; normal.  Meanwhile I was waking up and fainting again. By hearing the sentences of that physician, I became worried that I would be dead! I got upset. Up to that moment I thought that I would die and be free. The agents called by wireless and reported what the physician had told. From the other side, somebody told him: “If his heart is working properly, bring him here and do not do any surgery on him there.” After this dialogue they took me in an ambulance and moved. On the way one of the agents would move my head and ask my name. But I would only say my Shahadatain[1] and I was still hopeful that I would die in few minutes.  On the way the sound of the ambulance was heard permanently.

About 4 o’clock we reached to Shahrbani Hospital in Northern Bahar Street. I was tolerating a bad pain and the agents were happy to have shot a guerilla. At that time, they would give good prizes to the one who had shot a guerrilla. They were happy of getting the prize expecting them.

Later, I understood the people crowded around me had known me and informed my friends and family that I had been shot dead in front of Refah High School. And they had taken my body. My friends would take a ceremony to mourn for me.[2]