UN High Commissioner for Human Rights calls for independent investigation into Mahsa Amini's death
As protests over the death of Mahsa Amini spread across various cities in Iran, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights called for an investigation into Ms. Amini's death on Tuesday, September 10, and expressed concern over the violent suppression of the protests.
"The heartbreaking death of Mahsa Amini and the allegations of torture and ill-treatment must be investigated promptly, impartially and effectively by a competent and independent authority, and in particular, it must be ensured that the Amini family obtains justice and the truth about the death of their child," Nadi Al-Nashif said in a statement.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights added: "In recent months, the activity of guidance patrols and their dealings with women who do not comply with hijab regulations have increased."
According to the organization, verified video footage shows guidance patrol officers beating women, beating them with batons, and forcibly throwing them into cars.
Mahsa Amini was arrested last Tuesday by an Ershad patrol unit and taken to a detention center. She was unconscious during the arrest and then taken to Kasra Hospital, but died three days later.
The Iranian government has not yet responded to the statement by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, but in the past it has rejected all criticism from this institution and accused UN inspectors and experts of being politically biased and collaborating with enemies of the Iranian government.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also tweeted on Tuesday: "Mahsa Amini should have been alive today. But the people of Iran and America are mourning her now. We call on the Iranian government to end the systematic repression of women and allow peaceful protests to take place."
Iranian law enforcement has released a CCTV video of Mahsa Amini fainting, claiming that she had a history of heart disease or a brain tumor. Some media experts in Iran say the footage is fragmented and, unlike all CCTV footage, the date and time of recording are not clear.
Amjad Amini, Mahsa's father, has denied the claim that his daughter has a heart condition in an interview with Iranian news sites, and on Tuesday, in an interview with the website Event 24, he said: "I categorically deny all the statements made by Sardar Rahimi, the commander of the police force."
Mr. Amini added: "They have not responded to my request to see the video recorded inside the Ershad patrol car and in the detention center."
He accused the police of taking his daughter to the hospital too late, saying that if they had been transported faster, doctors could have saved her life.
Mr. Amini added that he was not allowed to see his daughter's body at the hospital, but he saw a bruise on her leg from a distance.
Mahsa Amini was buried in her hometown of Saqqez on Saturday morning. Shortly after the funeral, protests began in the city and gradually spread to other cities in Kurdistan, including Sanandaj, Mahabad, Marivan, and Divandarreh.
So far, the United States, France, and the European Union, as well as Javed Rehman, the UN rapporteur on human rights in Iran, have condemned Tehran for the mistreatment that led to Mahsa Amini's death.
Source: Radio Farda
