Woman, 22, dies after falling into coma while in custody of Iran’s morality police | CNN

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A 22-year-old Iranian woman has died after being arrested by Iran’s morality police earlier this week, Iran’s semi-official Etimad online website reported, citing her uncle.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has ordered an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death, Iran’s state news agency ISNA reported on Friday.

On Tuesday evening, Mahsa Amini and her family, who had traveled from Iran’s Kurdistan region to visit relatives in the capital Tehran, were stopped by a patrol of the morality police – which enforces a strict dress code for women. , such as dressing up. Mandatory head scarf.

According to Iran Wire, human rights activists who have spoken to the family say the police grabbed Amini and forced her into a police car.

Iranwire reported that her brother, Kiarish, tried to intervene and was told that his sister was being taken to the police station for an hour of “re-education”.

Kyarish said he never saw his sister awake again.

As he waited outside the police station for her release, an ambulance arrived and carefully took his sister to the hospital.

In an interview with Iran Wire, Kiarish said that she was told that she had suffered a heart attack or stroke while in the police station and was in a coma.

Tehran police said on Thursday that Amini had suffered a “heart attack” after his arrest on Tuesday.

“The woman was sent to the Greater Tehran Police area for guidance and education when suddenly, in the presence of other people, she suffered a heart attack,” police said.

Amini’s family questioned the version of events given by the police, saying she was a normal, healthy 22-year-old girl with no heart disease.

“There were only two hours between his arrest and being taken to the hospital,” Kiarish told IranWire.

State media said a video released by Iran’s state TV showed Amini visiting an “educational” center where she would receive “guidance” on proper Islamic dress.

The edited video shows CCTV footage of a woman taking a seat, then standing up to speak to an “expert” who touches her clothes, before collapsing to the ground. .

The following clip shows five men carrying him on a stretcher, apparently unconscious. An ambulance is then shown in the second frame.

There is an edit in the 19-second video, after which the woman can be seen standing up and speaking. Before the cut, daylight is visible outside. After cutting, it looks black.

“Ms. Amini looks sick and collapsed on the floor,” says the official media reporter.

It is unknown what happened to Amini after his arrest and before he returned to the education center. CNN could not confirm that the woman in the video is Amini.

Iranian authorities said on Saturday that they had conducted an autopsy on Amini’s body. Speaking on state TV, the director of Iran’s Forensic Medical Organization, Mehdi Forozesh, said the results would be announced after further examinations by medical experts.

Jack Sullivan, US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, said in a tweet on Friday that the White House is deeply concerned about Amini’s death.

Amini was allegedly beaten in custody by Iran’s morality police. His death is unforgivable. We will continue to hold Iranian authorities accountable for human rights abuses,” Sullivan tweeted.