On June 24, Iranian Superstar Andy Madadian went into an LA recording studio with Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora and American record producers Don Was and John Shanks to record a musical message of worldwide solidarity with the people of Iran.
This version of the old Ben E. King classic is not for sale - it was not meant to be on the Billboard charts or even manufactured as a CD.....it's intended to be downloaded and shared by the Iranian people...to give voice to the sentiment that all people of the world stand together....the handwritten Farsi sign in the video translates to "we are one".
If you know someone in Iran - or someone who knows someone in Iran - please share this link:
Neda's Death. Eyewitness
As you might have read on Paulo Coelho's blog, I was the doctor who tried to save Neda. I am the one who sent the video of her cruel death for the world to see. I am the person in the video who tries to control her bleeding ... in vain. I was the one who looked into her eyes, right before they lost their light forever. A famous Iranian writer called Sadeq Hedayet wrote, "There are sores which slowly erode the mind in solitude like a kind of canker."
I have to live with this sore. But I am going to tell the story soon.
Thursday, 25 June 2009 19:13 UK
Iran doctor tells of Neda's death
"We heard a gunshot. Neda was standing a metre away from me... I saw blood gushing out of her chest"
The doctor who tried to save an Iranian protester as she bled to death on a street in Tehran has told the BBC of her final moments.
Dr Arash Hejazi, who is studying at a university in the south of England, said he ran to Neda Agha-Soltan's aid after seeing she had been shot in the chest.
Despite his attempts to stop the bleeding she died in less than a minute, he said.
Dr Hejazi says he posted the video of Ms Soltan's death on the internet and images of her have become a rallying point for Iranian opposition supporters around the world.
He also told how passers-by then seized an armed Basij militia volunteer who appeared to admit shooting Ms Soltan.
Dr Hejazi said he had not slept for three nights following the incident, but he wanted to speak out so that her death was not in vain.
He doubted that he would be able to return to Iran after talking openly about Ms Soltan's killing.
Neda Agha-Soltan was shot in the chest
"I was there with some friends because we had heard that there were some protests and we decided to go and take a look," he said.
"Anti-riot police were coming by motorcycles towards the crowd."
Dr Hejazi said he saw Ms Soltan, who he did not know, with an older man who he thought was her father but later on learned was her music teacher.
"Suddenly everything turned crazy. The police threw teargas and the motorcycles started rushing towards the crowd. We ran to an intersection and people were just standing. They didn't know what to do.
"We heard a gunshot. Neda was standing one metre away from me. I turned back and I saw blood gushing out of Neda's chest.
"She was in a shocked situation, just looking at her chest. The she lost her control.
"We ran to her and lay her on the ground. I saw the bullet wound just below the neck with blood gushing out.
"I have never seen such a thing because the bullet, it seemed to have blasted inside her chest, and later on, blood exiting from her mouth and nose.
Ms Soltan has become a rallying point for protesters around the world
"I had the impression that it had hit the lung as well. Her blood was draining out of her body and I was just putting pressure on the wound to try to stop the bleeding, which wasn't successful unfortunately, and she died in less than one minute."
Dr Hejazi said he first thought the gunshot had come from a rooftop.
But later he saw protesters grab an armed man on a motorcycle.
"People shouted 'we got him, we got him'. They disarmed him and took out his identity card which showed he was a Basij member. People were furious and he was shouting, 'I didn't want to kill her'.
"People didn't know what do to do with him so they let him go. But they took his identity card. There are people there who know who he is. Some people were also taking photos of him."
Dr Hejazi said he knew he was putting himself in jeopardy by talking about what happened.
"It was a tough decision to make to come out and talk about it but she died for a cause. She was fighting for basic rights... I don't want her blood to have been shed in vain."
He added: "She died on the streets to say something."
Dr Hejazi said he did not believe he could now return to Iran.
"They are going to denounce what I am saying. They are going to put so many things on me. I have never been in politics. I am jeopardising my situation because of the innocent look in her (Neda's) eyes.
Ebadi said that Iran's constitution allows people to protest peacefully without permission [EPA]
Neda Soltan's family forced out of home' by Iranian authorities
Parents of young woman shot dead near protests are banned from mourning and funeral is cancelled, neighbours say
A correspondent in Tehran
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 24 June 2009 18.00 BST
The Iranian authorities have ordered the family of Neda Agha Soltan out of their Tehran home after shocking images of her death were circulated around the world.
Neighbours said that her family no longer lives in the four-floor apartment building on Meshkini Street, in eastern Tehran, having been forced to move since she was killed. The police did not hand the body back to her family, her funeral was cancelled, she was buried without letting her family know and the government banned mourning ceremonies at mosques, the neighbours said.
"We just know that they [the family] were forced to leave their flat," a neighbour said. The Guardian was unable to contact the family directly to confirm if they had been forced to leave.
The government is also accusing protesters of killing Soltan, describing her as a martyr of the Basij militia. Javan, a pro-government newspaper, has gone so far as to blame the recently expelled BBC correspondent, Jon Leyne, of hiring "thugs" to shoot her so he could make a documentary film.
Soltan was shot dead on Saturday evening near the scene of clashes between pro-government militias and demonstrators, turning her into a symbol of the Iranian protest movement. Barack Obama spoke of the "searing image" of Soltan's dying moments at his press conference yesterday.
Amid scenes of grief in the Soltan household with her father and mother screaming, neighbours not only from their building but from others in the area streamed out to protest at her death. But the police moved in quickly to quell any public displays of grief. They arrived as soon as they found out that a friend of Soltan had come to the family flat.
In accordance with Persian tradition, the family had put up a mourning announcement and attached a black banner to the building.
But the police took them down, refusing to allow the family to show any signs of mourning. The next day they were ordered to move out. Since then, neighbours have received suspicious calls warning them not to discuss her death with anyone and not to make any protest.
A tearful middle-aged woman who was an immediate neighbour said her family had not slept for days because of the oppressive presence of the Basij militia, out in force in the area harassing people since Soltan's death.
The area in front of Soltan's house was empty today. There was no sign of black cloths, banners or mourning. Secret police patrolled the street.
"We are trembling," one neighbour said. "We are still afraid. We haven't had a peaceful time in the last days, let alone her family. Nobody was allowed to console her family, they were alone, they were under arrest and their daughter was just killed. I can't imagine how painful it was for them. Her friends came to console her family but the police didn't let them in and forced them to disperse and arrested some of them. Neda's family were not even given a quite moment to grieve."
Another man said many would have turned up to show their sympathy had it not been for the police.
"In Iran, when someone dies, neighbours visit the family and will not let them stay alone for weeks but Neda's family was forced to be alone, otherwise the whole of Iran would gather here," he said. "The government is terrible, they are even accusing pro-Mousavi people of killing Neda and have just written in their websites that Neda is a Basiji (government militia) martyr. That's ridiculous – if that's true why don't they let her family hold any funeral or ceremonies? Since the election, you are not able to trust one word from the government." A shopkeeper said he had often met Soltan, who used to come to his store.
"She was a kind, innocent girl. She treated me well and I appreciated her behaviour. I was surprised when I found out that she was killed by the riot police. I knew she was a student as she mentioned that she was going to university. She always had a nice peaceful smile and now she has been sacrificed for the government's vote-rigging in the presidential election."
The Doctor
Published by Paulo Coelho on June 24, 2009
Iran 2000, Brazilian Writer Paulo Coelho with Iranian Doctor and Translator Arash Hejazi
(Late Sunday I watch Neda’s video. I suspect that I recognize Arash Hejazi, but I prefer not to believe in what I am seeing. I send him and email)
Sunday 21 23:011
Dear Arash
I need to know where you stand, if things that I am seeing/reading are true. Then I can myself take a position - depending on your advice, of course.
love
Paulo
Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 02:05:05 -04:00
Subject: your country
Dearest Paulo,
I am now in Tehran. The video of Neda’s murder was taken by my friend, and you can recognize me in the video. I was the doctor who tried to save her and failed. She died in my arms. I am writing with tears in my eyes. Please don’t mention my name. I’ll contact you with more details soon.
Love
Arash
The doctor with Neda
(At this point, I decide to put the video in my blog)
(For the rest of the day, I try to contact him. At one point, someone answers his phone as a “CNN journalist”. I start to become worried)
Monday 22 17:46
Dear Arash
so far, no news from you. After I published the video in my blog, it seems that it spread worldwide, including posts in NY Times, Guardian, National Review, etc.
Therefore, my main concern now is about you. You NEED to answer this email, saying that you are all right
and
the name of the person where we spend the New Year’s Eve in 2001 together, just to be sure that it is you really who is answering this email. I don’t buy this CNN person answering your mobile.
If you don’t do that, I may leak your name to the press, in order to protect you - visibility is the only protection at this point. I know this because I am a former prisoner of conscience.
If you do that, unless instructed otherwise by you, I will stop the pressure for the moment. My main concern now is you and your family.
love
Paulo
P.S. - there are several trusted friends in blind copy here.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009 1:35 AM
Dearest Paulo
I am alright for now. I am not staying at home. I don’t know about CNN. The friend’s name was Frederick.
Love
Arash
Sent: Tuesday, June 23, 2009 1:37 AM
Dearest Paulo,
Trying to leave the country tomorrow morning. If I don’t arrive in London at 2 pm., something has happened to me. Till then, wait.
My wife and my son are in (edited). Their phone (edited) Her email (edited)
Please wait till tomorrow. If something happens to me, please take care of (name of wife) and (name of son), they are there, alone, and have no one else in the world.
Much love, it was an honor having you as a friend.
Arash
(At this point, a Brazilian journalist, Luis Antonio Ryff, who traveled to Iran to cover my visit, recognizes Arash in the video, and writes me to double-check. I confirm, but I ask him to keep his name secret until today. Ryff agrees – even knowing that this would be a major scoop for him. I would like to thank him here, for his dignity)
Wednesday 24
1:55 PM
Arash landed in London
"My best friend in Iran, a doctor who showed me its beautiful culture when I visited Teheran in 2000, who fought a war in the name of the Islamic Republic (against Iraq), who took care of wounded soldiers in the frontline, who always stood by real human values, is seen here trying to resuscitate Neda - hit in her heart."
-Paulo Coelho
When angels talk
Nobody is courageous all the time. The unknown is a constant challenge, and being afraid is part of the journey.
What to do? Talk to yourself. Talk alone. Talk to yourself even if others think you have gone crazy. As we talk, an inner force gives us the security to overcome the obstacles that need to be surmounted. We learn lessons from the defeats that we are bound to suffer. And we prepare ourselves for the many victories that will be part of our life.
And just between you and me, those who have this habit (and I’m one of them) know that they never talk alone: the guardian angel is there, listening and helping us to reflect. What follows are some stories about angels.
