Wikipedia

Behesht-e Zahra

Behesht-e Zahra (Persian: بهشت زهرا [beˈheʃtʰe zæhˈɹɒː]; lit. 'Paradise of Zahra') is the largest cemetery in Iran. Located in the southern part of metropolitan Tehran,[1] it is connected to the city by Tehran Metro Line 1.

Behesht-e Zahra
بهشت زهرا
Map
Interactive map of Behesht-e Zahra
بهشت زهرا
Details
Established1970
Location
Tehran
CountryIran
Coordinates35°32′10″N 51°22′12″E / 35.536°N 51.370°E / 35.536; 51.370
TypePublic
Size534 hectares (1,320 acres)
No. of graves1,600,000
Websitebeheshtezahra.tehran.ir

History

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In the early 1950s, all the cemeteries in Tehran were supposed to be replaced by several large new ones outside the then precincts of the capital. Behesht-e Zahra was built in late 1960s on the southern side of Tehran towards the direction of the city of Qom and opened on 29 June 1970 by mayor of Tehran, Gholamreza Nikpey.

Many of the deceased soldiers of the Iran–Iraq War were buried in the martyrs' section of the cemetery.[2][3][4]

In 2025, satellite pictures emerged showing the cemetery's Lot 41, where victims of mass executions that occurred following the Iranian Revolution are buried, being paved over and converted into a parking area.[5]

Notable burials

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Royalty

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Politicians (Pahlavi Era)

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Military personnel

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Political dissidents

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Politicians (Islamic Republic)

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Scholars and journalists

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Artists

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Actors, actresses and film directors

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Athletes

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Businessmen and philanthropists

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  • Mohammad-Ali Mofarrah (fa) (1915–1983) – businessman and founder of Bank Saderat Iran
  • Gholāmali Abidi (fa) (1920–2004) – scholar and businessman
  • Mohammad-Taghi Barkhordār (1924–2012) – businessman
  • Ahmad Atāei (fa) (1919–2013) – philanthropist
  • Fereydoun Novin Farahbakhsh (fa) (1930–2013) – businessman and collector
  • Mahāfarid Amir-Khosravi (1969–2014) – businessman
  • Abdorrahim Jafari (fa) (1919–2015) – philanthropist
  • Rezā Niāzmand (fa) (1921–2017) – philanthropist
  • Asghar Ghandchi (1928–2019) – philanthropist

Others

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In addition to the tombs of royalty, politicians, and other significant people, in the cemetery there are symbolic tombs for the perpetrators of the 1983 Hezbollah attacks on the U.S. Marine and French peacekeepers' barracks in Beirut and for the assassin of Anwar Sadat, Khalid Islambuli.[3] Similarly, a symbolic tomb was erected in the cemetery for Hezbollah member Imad Mughniyah, who was killed on 12 February 2008 in Damascus, Syria.[7]

Images

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See also

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References

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  1. ↑ Sahimi, Mohammad (3 February 2010). "The Ten Days That Changed Iran". Los Angeles: PBS. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  2. ↑ "Tehran Behesht Zahra Martyrs' Cemetery". sites-of-memory.de. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  3. 1 2 Alfoneh, Ali (Winter 2007). "Iran's Suicide Brigades". Middle East Quarterly. XIV (7): 37–44. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
  4. ↑ Thomas Goltz (8 April 2015). Azerbaijan Diary: A Rogue Reporter's Adventures in an Oil-rich, War-torn, Post-Soviet Republic. Routledge. pp. 442–. ISBN 978-1-317-47624-5.
  5. ↑ "Iran paves over mass grave of 1979 revolution victims, turning it into a parking lot". AP News. Retrieved 8 September 2025.
  6. ↑ Scott Peterson (21 September 2010). Let the Swords Encircle Me: Iran – A Journey Behind the Headlines. Simon & Schuster. pp. 701. ISBN 978-1-4165-9739-1. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
  7. ↑ Chalhoub, Elie (14 February 2012). "Imad Mughniyeh in Iran: The Stuff of Legends". Al Akhbar. Archived from the original on 29 September 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
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