Activists in Iran claimed on Wednesday, October 4, that the country's morality police were responsible for the serious injuries sustained by a teenage girl who was not wearing a headscarf in a Tehran subway station. The Iranian officials and the teen's parents, however, insist she was hospitalized due to low blood pressure.
According to the Norway-based Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, a 16-year-old named Armita Geravand is in a coma after being assaulted by morality police last weekend. IranWire, another opposition network, claimed to have learned that Geravand had been hospitalized with head trauma.
Awyer Shekhi, a member of the Hengaw staff, told CNN, "Prior to her arrival at the Shohada metro station, female morality police officers approached her and requested that she adjust her hijab. This request resulted in an altercation with the morality police officers physically assaulting Armita. She was pushed, leading to her collapse."
Apparently, after the confrontation, the young girl made it into the subway but fainted later on, Shekhi added.
No Confrontation?
The CEO of the Tehran Metro, nevertheless, told state media that Geravand had no contact with his employees.
The company's managing director, Masoud Dorosti, said that their internal investigation found no evidence of a verbal or physical altercation between the passengers and their personnel from the time the girl entered the station until the time she boarded the train.
Fars News Agency, a state-affiliated news outlet, shared a video on X (previously known as Twitter) showing a group of young women boarding a subway car. It has been unable to determine which of the females in the video is Geravand.
Some of the women who entered with Geravand did not appear to be wearing head coverings. A few seconds later, while the metro is pulling out of the station, a group of girls can be seen taking Geravand out of the train and laying her on the platform.
In the edited footage shown by official media, there was no physical conflict. The media has been unable to verify the accuracy of the events.
In an interview with state media, Geravand's parents said their daughter had banged her head after fainting due to low blood pressure on the way to school. According to the parents, they noticed no evidence in the recordings they watched that Geravand was mistreated.
It is not clear if Geravand's relatives were pressured into giving an interview to the state-run media. Previously, the families of demonstrators slain by Iranian police have been accused by the United Nations and rights organizations of being coerced into making comments in favor of the government's narrative.
The teenager is now getting medical care in Tehran. Reportedly, she is currently receiving medical care at Fajr Air Force Hospital.
