Explained: Who Was Mahsa Amini? Why Has Her Death Spiraled Protests In Iran

Following the custodial death of a young woman over improper wearing of her headscarf, civil unrest has spread into various cities in Iran. The agitation still continues unabated, and as demonstrations rock the nation, authorities have stepped in to stomp out the protestors.

AFP

Who was Mahsa Amini?

Mahsa Amini was a 22-year-old Iranian woman who was arrested in the capital city of Tehran. However, three days after she was taken into custody, Amina died.

Officials claimed that Amina died due to a heart attack. The edited camera footage they released shows Amini collapsed while she was being taken to a ¡°re-education center¡± to receive ¡°guidance¡± on her attire.

Reuters

However, based on the reports, while Amini was in detention, she was beaten and probably tortured, which eventually pushed her into a coma, leading to her death. Amina¡¯s father also informed that the woman was not suffering from heart ailments and had suffered bruises on her legs.

What role did the morality police play?

Reuters

In Iran, the morality police enforce strict social dress codes for women, the hijab being one of them. The police thus took Amina into custody due to her improper wearing of the hijab, a traditional headscarf worn by Muslim women. Specifically, her hijab did not entirely cover her hair.

The morality police have been cracking down on the female dress code since the election of hardliner Ebrahim Raisi last year.

What happened during the protests?

There are several videos that emerged from the protest sites. In one video footage, protestors can be heard chanting ferocious feminist slogans such as, ¡°Women, life, freedom.¡± In another video, women protestors can be seen lighting their headscarves and destroying posters of the country¡¯s Supreme Leader, and shouting, ¡°Death to the dictator.¡±

AFP

Apart from the protestors, the authorities have also been cracking down on the media personnel. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), around 11 journalists were picked up in ¡°post-midnight raids¡± of their homes. It said that Shardh Daily¡¯s Niloofar Hamedi, who was credited for reporting from Amini¡¯s hospital bedside, was one of them who had to go through the raiding of her house. Similarly, photographer Yalda Moaiery was beaten and arrested over her coverage of the protests.

Due to the rising turmoil, the Iranian government attempted to curtail the organization of such protests by partially blacking out internet access and issuing restrictions for communication applications like WhatsApp and Instagram.

Reuters

The worsening situation in the nation has led to the Biden administration imposing new sanctions on the morality police and other Iranian officials. The US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called Amina¡¯s death ¡°another act of brutality¡± by the regime against its people. After gathering the news of the internet disruption, the Treasury Department also announced that it would permit technology firms to expand in the country to boost Internet access.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei¡¯s top aide said that the young woman¡¯s death pained the leader. Besides, President Ebrahim Raisi spoke to reporters while he was in New York for the UN General Assembly. He said that Amini¡¯s death would be investigated if it ¡°was due to negligence.¡±

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