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Alireza Fazeli Monfared was beheaded by his own family for being gay.

A shocking murder has once again shone a light on the plight of homosexuals living in totalitarian Iran.

Fazeli Monfared was beheaded by his own brother for being gay.

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Fazeli’s sexuality became apparent to his brother when he found the 20-year old’s exemption card from compulsory military service. Under Irian law, gay men can be exempt from service given homosexuality is classified as a ‘mental disorder.’ 

Fazeli was planning to flee Iran before his family intervened.

Iranian journalist Masih Alinejad reports that Fazeli was lured to a desert location and “beheaded” by his half-brother and cousins.

“After beheading him, the family dumped this poor man’s body under a tree outside of the city of Ahwaz,” Alinejad tweeted. “Alireza was about to flee Iran to join his boyfriend, who’s a refugee waiting for him in Turkey.

The BBC reported that they had received audio recordings of Fazeli Monfared saying his family had threatened his life, although those recordings have not been released publicly yet.

It is unclear when or if arrests will be made in connection with the murders. Under Iranian law, the brothers could receive a lesser sentence if they discovered his brother was sexually active with other males.

Homosexuality remains punishable by death in Iran and it is unlikely that would change without a replacement of the current regime which runs the middle eastern state as a theoretic Islamic republic.

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