The Iranian press announced that Armita Geravand has been declared brain dead. The young woman fell into a coma after the morality police attacked her at the beginning of the month, according to various reports, because she had failed to comply with the legal obligation for women to wear a hijab.
This was reported by Reuters, which also revealed that the Iranian regime denied that the young woman was injured in an encounter with the Islamic religious police at the Shohoda metro station in Tehran. Human rights organizations, such as the non-profit organization Hengaw, reported that Geravand was transported to the Fajr Air Force hospital, where she was being monitored.
According to the latest report received by Hengaw on Saturday, October 14, 2023, #ArmitaGaravand remains in a comatose state, and her physical condition has shown no signs of improvement.
There have been claims circulating on social media networks in the name of Hengaw,… pic.twitter.com/a2QTVFtwkC
— Hengaw Organization for Human Rights (@Hengaw_English) October 14, 2023
According to Hengaw, the mother of the alleged victim, Shahin Ahmadi, was arrested days later when she was near the hospital where her daughter was hospitalized. The organization also published in an update on the case that Armita Geravand's father had acknowledged his daughter was brain dead in an interview, although "implicitly" as he did not use the term "brain dead."
Echoes of the Mahsa Amini case
The case is reminiscent of that of Mahsa Amini, from September of last year. The 22-year-old Iranian woman died after being tortured by morality police for not wearing her hijab correctly. The authorities denied killing her.
Amini's death sparked nationwide protests against Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei. Due to the impact, Amini and the Women, Life and Freedom Movement in Iran received the 2023 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought this month.
This same Sunday, two journalists who reported on the Amini case were sentenced to prison by an Iranian court. Elaheh Mohammadi, a 36-year-old reporter, and Niloufar Hamedi, a 31-year-old photographer, were sentenced to serve up to seven years in prison after being found guilty by an Iranian court of collaborating with the United States, conspiring with state security and propaganda against Iran, according to the local agency Mizan Online.
