Iranian schoolgirl Asra Panahi 'beaten to death for refusing to sing' pro-regime anthem

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Iranian schoolgirl ‘beaten to death for refusing to sing’ pro-regime anthem

Fresh protests ignited around Iran by 16-year-old Asra Panahi’s death after schoolgirls assaulted in raid on high school in Ardabil

Deepa Parent and Annie Kelly
Tue 18 Oct 2022 06.30 BST
Last modified on Tue 18 Oct 2022 17.35 BST

Another schoolgirl has reportedly been killed by the Iranian security services after she was beaten in her classroom for refusing to sing a pro-regime song when her school was raided last week, sparking further protests across the country this weekend.

According to the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations, 16-year-old Asra Panahi died after security forces raided the Shahed girls high school in Ardabil on 13 October and demanded a group of girls sing an anthem that praises Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

When they refused, security forces beat the pupils, leading to a number of girls being taken to hospital and others arrested. On Friday, Panahi reportedly died in hospital of injuries sustained at the school.

Iranian officials denied that its security forces were responsible and, after her death sparked outrage across the country, a man identified as her uncle appeared on state TV channels claiming she had died from a congenital heart condition.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/oct/18/iranian-schoolgirl-beaten-to-death-for-refusing-to-sing-pro-regime-anthem


Asra Panahi was reportedly beaten by the Iranian security services during a raid on her school in Ardabil last week. Photograph: Handout

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Asra_Panahi

[Tetrachloride]

1. Ardabil is northwest Iran , south of Azerbaijan