Protests in Iran reflect rage at how the regime treats women

• Mahsa Amini was arrested for allegedly failing to fully cover her hair.
• Three days later, she was dead. Amini’s death has ignited a wave of protests across Iran.
• Videos show women removing headscarves and even burning them in front of cheering crowds.

A dark-haired 22-year-old woman from Iran’s Kurdistan region, she travelled to Tehran to see relatives. However, outside a subway station, the “morality police” arrested Mahsa Amini and dragged her into a police van for allegedly failing to fully cover her hair. She died three days later.

Amini’s death in the capital has sparked a wave of protests across the country, revealing a raw anger among Iranian women about the regime’s treatment of them and an unprecedented willingness to defy the regime.

“Many people are pointing out that this could be my daughter, sister, or wife,” Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the Center for Human Rights in Iran in New York, said. “People are concerned that if a woman leaves the house, she may not return.”

As Iran’s hardline President Ebrahim Raisi met world leaders in New York this week for the United Nations General Assembly, extraordinary scenes in his country unfolded, with women removing and even burning their headscarves in front of cheering crowds, according to videos posted online.

The combination of viral videos and pent-up rage, according to Ghaemi, represents a potential “George Floyd” moment for Iran, with the regime now “forced into a corner given how innocent this woman was and there was no grounds for treating her so violently.”

The Iranian mission to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment.

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According to Iranian state media, Raisi has ordered an investigation into Amini’s death and called her father to express her condolences.

“When I learned about this incident during my trip to Uzbekistan, I immediately directed my colleagues to conduct a thorough investigation.” “According to his official website, Raisi stated during the phone call. “I assure you that I will press the responsible institutions to clarify the issue’s dimensions.”

The president stated emphatically that he regards all Iranian girls as his own children. “Your daughter is like my own, and I believe this happened to one of my loved ones. Please accept my heartfelt condolences “He continued.

According to human rights groups, eyewitnesses who were also in the van told Amini’s father that she was beaten up in the police vehicle on the way to the detention centre. Iranian authorities, on the other hand, stated that she died of a heart attack and called the incident “unfortunate.”

“They said Mahsa had heart disease and epilepsy, but as her father who raised her for 22 years, I can say unequivocally that Mahsa was not ill.” Amini’s father told an Iranian news outlet, “She was in perfect health.”

Women’s rights activists have fought the theocracy since its inception following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, protesting against the mandatory veil or hijab, as well as a slew of laws that critics and U.N. rights monitors say make women second-class citizens.

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