News16-year-old girl in a coma. She was reportedly attacked by the "morality police"

16‑year-old girl in a coma. She was reportedly attacked by the "morality police"

The 16-year-old Iranian girl has been hospitalized. The circumstances of the event are unclear.
The 16-year-old Iranian girl has been hospitalized. The circumstances of the event are unclear.
Images source: © Instagram

5:58 AM EDT, October 6, 2023

A 16-year-old Iranian girl was taken to the hospital after losing consciousness in the Tehran subway. According to human rights activists, the girl was brutally attacked by morality officers. The teenager is in a coma.

The situation occurred at a metro station in Tehran. According to official information released by state media, 16-year-old Armita Garavand fainted just after getting on the train. Surveillance cameras captured the moment when her friends carried the unconscious girl onto the platform.

16-year-old Iranian girl in the hospital

Oppositional Iranian websites present a completely different version of events. They claim that Garavand is the latest victim of brutal enforcement of the controversial Iranian law regarding the hijab.

According to the "Iran International" service, the morality police intervened on the train because Armita had her head uncovered. Unofficial findings suggest that the officers pushed the girl, causing her to fall and lose consciousness.

According to one of the human rights organizations, a 16-year-old girl was transported to a hospital in Tehran, since October 1st, she has been in a coma. A picture of the teenager from the intensive care unit was shared online. According to "IranWire" the girl suffered a serious head injury.

Contradictory versions

The director general of the Tehran metro told state media that there had been no physical or verbal interaction between Geravand and his staff members. - The cameras recorded nothing - said Masoud Dorosti.

This narrative is supported by the parents of the 16-year-old. In a conversation with state television, they stated that according to doctors, their daughter probably fainted due to low blood pressure while she was on her way to school.

It's not clear whether the Geravand family was forced to speak with state media. CNN compares this case to the story of a young Kurdish girl, Mahsy Amini, whose death after being arrested by the morality police led to a wave of protests in Iran.