IRAN: Students Arrested as Security Forces Attack Univ. Campuses, Mahsa Amini Death, Morality Police
- Rights & Freedom, Iran. 'Dozens arrested as Iranian security forces attack university campuses.' The Guardian, Nov. 4, '22. - Ed.
Detained students could face death penalty, human rights groups report, with at least 277 people killed as protests enter 8th week.
Iran’s security forces have launched a series of attacks on university students at campuses across the country with dozens of students being arrested, according to the Students’ Union of Iran. According to student organisations & human rights groups, the attacks on universities intensified this week as young people gathered to mark 40 days since Mahsa Amini died in the custody of Iran’s morality police in Sept.
The death of the 22-year-old woman sparked 8 weeks of nationwide protests against the regime. The highly symbolic 40th day traditionally marks the end of mourning.
The Students Union of Iran has documented more than 40 arrests of university students & is collating reports of detentions & raids on campuses by security forces across the country on its Telegram channel.
The Norway-based Hengaw Organ.for Human Rights, which reports on Kurdish areas said the fate of dozens of young people arrested last week & many others detained by security forces for attending earlier protests remained unknown. Anousheh*, a student at a university in Tehran, said that she was violently assaulted by security forces as she left campus. “One of my best friends was arrested this weekend & I still don’t know where he is,” she said. “[After the protests] security forces were waiting for students to exit the university & they started beating us with batons. We all ran for our lives. We have been warned by our faculty to stop the protests immediately to avoid arrests [but] we are not stopping.”
Students in Mashhad also said they had been attacked this week, with videos online appearing to show plainclothes officers dragging students into vehicles. Karim* said he was with about 200 students who had gathered on 26 Oct. to mark the 40th day of mourning for Mahsa Amini. Moments after arriving, Karim claims security locked the gates & blocked the exits. Students were detained & beaten as they tried to leave, he said. “After 3 hours, with security using teargas & batons, I managed to get out but at least 7 of my friends have since been detained this week. Once they’re taken away, no one knows where they are. Univ. officials are powerless. I don’t know one friend who hasn’t witnessed a kidnapping, arrest or hasn’t helped save an injured friend. Student unions here believe at least 50 students have been arrested in our city alone.”
Another student from Mashhad, who said he was attacked as he attended a protest, said security forces beat young people unconscious & refused them access to medical help. “One of my closest friends was beaten so badly that I’ve spent the past 4 days caring for him at the hospital.. I know that more students have been arrested. We don’t know where they are or if they’re safe. Next time they lock us in, they’ll kill dozens of us.” Some students arrested at the start of the protests have not been heard from since their arrests.. On 30 Oct., Human Rights Watch estimated that at least 308 univ. students had been arrested by regime forces since the protests began..Police special forces – plainclothes officers who were reportedly armed – “attacked & kidnapped students from their dormitories”.
IHRNGO warned that dozens of protesters, including univ. students, could be executed after Iranian authorities began charging detainees with security-related offences, including “enmity against god” (moharebeh) and “corruption on earth” (efsad-fil-arz)...
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/nov/04/dozens-arrested-as-iranian-security-forces-attack-university-campuses
= new reply since forum marked as read
reminds me of Goya’s painting of Cronus
