A viral post by the account @TaraBull (later shared and debunked by others) claimed that a 28-year-old Iranian woman named Negin Ghadimi was killed by the Iranian regime while “demanding freedom.”
The post featured a portrait of a woman with dark hair and green eyes to elicit an emotional response. The woman in the photograph is not an Iranian protester. She is Tuba Büyüküstün, one of Turkey’s most famous and successful actresses, known internationally for her roles in Kara Para Aşk (Black Money Love) and Cesur ve Güzel. Büyüküstün is alive and was not involved in the incident described.
The use of “beautiful victim” imagery is a documented tactic in psychological operations (PSYOVs) and digital propaganda.
This is not an isolated incident. Similar cases have occurred during various global conflicts.
While human rights organizations have documented actual casualties during protests in Iran, the insertion of fabricated identities like this one often harms the credibility of legitimate reporting and complicates the efforts of those trying to document real-world events.
