Officially abandoned, the rusty and dented letterbox gives little indication that someone is still living inside the building.
A hole is all that is left of the former entrance door, now only covered by a drape with animal print. The garage door is wide open and reveals that a tent has been set up inside. Images are painted on the walls, some windows are barricaded, others have messages written on them.
One of these messages reads “King IRAN Reza Pahlavi” in French. Next to it is an image containing the words “art school Prime Minister IRAN chapour Bakhtir”, also in French.
Reza Pahlavi is the oldest son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of the Imperial State of Iran who was forced to flee the country with his family during the Iranian Revolution on 11 February 1979. He later pleaded repeatedly that the religious and political authorities in his home engage in a peaceful transfer of power, including a people’s referendum to decide over the future of Iran’s political system.
As a reaction to the criticism, a fatwa was issued.
Chapour Bakthiar was Prime Minister of Iran from 1978 to 1979. He fled to France in April that year. In 1991, he was stabbed to death by members of the Iranian secret service in Suresnes near Paris.
What is the connection between these two people and the house in Weimerskirch? According to two neighbours, an Iranian started living in the house about a year ago, mainly using it as a type of workshop. Another woman explains that she occasionally saw him running around holding signs.
While neighbours became suspicious of the man and his behaviour, who apparently has an issue with the current Iranian regime, he never harassed anyone. However, police came a few months ago and removed the man from the house.
Ever since, the house has been barricaded and abandoned, said one of the neighbours, who had not even realised that the door was open again as she rarely walks by so closely. The other neighbour then explained that two homeless men had moved in, but that nothing else had occurred since.
Who owns the building? None of the neighbours knew. One of them recalled a woman living there several years ago, but in the meantime the residents have changed frequently. According to official records, the real estate currently belongs in equal parts to three parties: two companies and one private person. It is not known however why the house is not being used.
There are many places in Luxembourg with such abandoned houses, presumably because owners speculate that real-estate prices continues climbing. It is not clear whether this is the case for the Weimerskirch building, but for now it helps put a roof over two people’s heads who would not otherwise have one.
