Iranian teen now ‘brain dead’ after alleged altercation with morality police on Tehran metro

Rights groups have accused officers of assaulting Armita Geravand for not wearing a hijab, an allegation denied by authorities

An Iranian teenager who fell into a coma after an alleged altercation with the country’s morality police is now “brain dead”, Iranian state media has said.

Sixteen-year-old Armita Geravand was admitted to hospital with head injuries earlier this month after the incident at a Tehran metro station.

Activists have accused the morality police of assaulting the teenager for not wearing a hijab.

Earlier in October, the Norway-based Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights, which focuses on Kurdish rights, said Ms Geravand had been “assaulted” by morality police and fallen into a coma. Another opposition network, IranWire, said Ms Geravand had been admitted to hospital with “head trauma”.

Iranian police have denied allegations that the teenager was hurt following a confrontation with officers, who say Ms Geravand “fainted” due to low blood pressure.

The teenager was admitted to Tehran’s Fajr Hospital after the incident, and has been receiving treatment under tight security.

“Follow-ups on the latest health condition of Armita Geravand indicate that her health condition as brain dead seems certain despite the efforts of the medical staff,” the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran News Network said.

Many Iranians have drawn parallels with the case of Mahsa Amini, 22, who died in custody in September 2022 after being detained by morality police in Tehran for allegedly wearing her hijab “improperly”. Witnesses alleged she was beaten by officers, but authorities attributed her death to pre-existing medical conditions.

During the protests that followed Amini’s death, hundreds of people were killed and thousands were detained amid a violent crackdown by security forces.

In September, Iran’s parliament passed a “hijab bill”, a law to impose much harsher penalties on women for violating the country’s already strict hijab rules. Women violating rules under the new law now face up to 10 years in prison.

Meanwhile, two journalists in Iran have received lengthy prison sentences for their reporting of Amini’s death, according to state media.

Niloofar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi were sentenced to 13 and 12 years in prison respectively, Iranian state news agency IRNA said. They are facing charges that include collaborating with the US government and acting against national security.

Legal representatives for the two journalists have denied the accusations. IRNA said the “issued verdicts” were subject to appeal.

Hamedi was apprehended after capturing a photograph of Amini’s parents embracing each other in a Tehran hospital where their daughter lay in a coma. Sharing the picture on X/Twitter, she said: “The black dress of mourning has become our national flag.”

Mohammadi was detained following her coverage of Amini’s funeral in her hometown of Saqez, which is in the Kurdish region where the protests initially erupted.