Protests have erupted in Iran after the death of a young woman. Mahsa Amini, 22, was arrested at the beginning of this week by the vice squad for allegedly failing to comply with Iranian rules that require a woman to cover her head.
Mahsa Amini, 22, is in a coma after being tortured by Iranian authorities.
This would be unacceptable no matter what, but the fact that she was arrested for improper wearing of the hijab makes it even more horrifying.
Please join me in sharing her name and story.#مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/FEB6BYfIZO
— Leah Remini (@LeahRemini) September 15, 2022
Women have been required to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothes since the 1979 Iranian revolution. In recent months, Iranian human rights activists have called on women to take off their hijabs in public areas to defend their own rights. However, this is a violation of the Islamic dress code and is considered ‘immoral behaviour’. Not wearing a hijab or not wearing it correctly can lead to a heavy-handed arrest.
Amini would also have been arrested in this heavy-handed way. According to eyewitnesses, the woman was assaulted in a police van after her arrest. The police contradict this and state that the woman had a heart attack when she was taken to the police station to be ‘educated’.
A protest is commencing now despite heavy police presence outside Tehran's Kasra Hospital where #MahsaAmini died earlier today.
Iran's so-called “morality police” beat & arbitrarily arrested her 3 days ago while enforcing the regime's discriminatory forced veiling laws. pic.twitter.com/HHmlFqhuV9
— M. Hanif Jazayeri (@HanifJazayeri) September 16, 2022
Amini was taken to hospital where she later died. Images circulated on social media of Amini in her hospital bed, with a severely swollen face, suggesting that she had actually been abused.
Anti-regime Protest in Tehran, #Iran, this evening, people chanting “I kill whoever killed my sister” in protest to the brutal murder of #Mahsa_Amini who was savagely beaten by morality police in detention. #مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/aswW4XMkhq
— Shahin Gobadi (@gobadi) September 16, 2022
Amina’s death stirs up a lot of tension among the people of Iran. Yesterday people took to the streets in Tehran. Videos have been posted on social media in which protesters shout “death to the dictator” . Drivers expressed their support for the protests with loud honking.
The circumstances leading to the suspicious death in custody of 22-year-old young woman Mahsa Amini, which include allegations of torture and other ill-treatment in custody, must be criminally investigated. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/pcAVeTWUnW
— Amnesty Iran (@AmnestyIran) September 16, 2022
Human rights organization Amnesty believes that the case should be investigated. US envoy to Iran Robert Malley also wants clarification. “Those responsible for her death must be held accountable,” he tweeted.
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