Thousands of girls in Iran have been poisoned at school since November. According to the authorities, there must be targeted actions, because girls’ schools have been the target in almost all cases. As far as is known, there were no casualties.
The girls suffered from headaches, shortness of breath, dizziness and breathing problems, among other things. In some cases, they passed out and had to be hospitalized.
Commission
It was announced on Friday that a commission investigating the case would issue a final report within two weeks. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the perpetrators should be severely punished. Several politicians suspect that it is an action by groups who want to put an end to girls’ education in the strictly Islamic country. Many arrests have been made since last month.
The poisonings lead to new protests against the regime in Tehran, which already had to deal with strong discontent among the population. Iranians have held large anti-government demonstrations since September. Those protests began after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. She was arrested by the morality police for allegedly not wearing the headscarf properly and died in custody.