After a woman died in custody in Iran, the police in there denied that brutal treatment at their hands was the cause of death.
By United with Israel Staff
On Monday, Iranian police fired canisters of tear gas at protesters in Sanandaj amid a large protest demanding answers regarding the death of Mahsa Amini.
The 22-year-old Kurdish woman died in custody in Tehran last week after being detained on Tuesday by Iran’s “morality police,” which rounded up Amini due to an alleged issue with her headscarf (hijab), an article of clothing all women must wear in public in the Islamic Republic.
Iranian police denied torturing Amini to death, claiming she died of a heart attack.
According to the semiofficial Fars news agency, Iranian police arrested a number of the 500 protesters on Sunday in Sanandaj, which is the capital of Iran’s Kurdish region.
Iran’s record of detaining, torturing and killing religious minorities extends to members of the Jewish, Christian, Bahai faiths.
“After Amini’s death, police last week also released closed circuit footage from the police station, which they say shows the moment Amini collapsed. A relative has said she had no history of heart disease,” reported the Associated Press.
“The headscarf has been compulsory for women in Iran since after the 1979 Islamic Revolution and members of the morality police enforce the strict dress code. The force has been criticized in recent years over its treatment of people, especially young women,” added the AP report.