Acid attacks on women in Isfahan

Last updated

A series of acid attacks on women in the Iranian city of Isfahan starting sometime around October 2014, raised fears and prompted reports that the victims were targeted for not being properly veiled. [1] As of October 27, 2014, at least twenty-five such attacks had occurred in Isfahan. At least one woman died and many more received severe burns to their faces and hands. [2] [3] Following public outrage over the attacks, the Iranian Parliament passed a law in 2019 that provided broader legal protection to survivors and increased the prison term for perpetrators of acid attacks. [4]

Contents

The attacks were reportedly carried out by 2 unknown assailants riding together on the same motorbike. They wore helmets with visors down to hide their faces and flung acid into the faces of women who were walking or driving automobiles. [1] [2] None of the perpetrators were found, and as a result the victims were given blood money (“Diyah” in Farsi [5] ) from the government. [6]

Known victims

There are four named victims from the 2014 acid attacks in Isfahan.

Neda M was a young woman in Isfahan who was reportedly driving to take clothes to a friend who needed them. She pulled over to answer a call from her mother when the acid was thrown in the car window at her. She lost her sight completely in one eye and only had 30% of her sight remaining in the other eye. [7] [8]

Maryam (no last name given) thought herself to be one of the early victims. She was a mother and student at the university who had gone shopping for her son’s upcoming birthday. She stated “A rider threw nearly two liters of acid through the driver’s window towards me, which affected my face, hands and my body.” [7] [8]

Marziyeh Ebrahimi turned to politics and activism following the acid attack against her in Isfahan in 2014. She was featured as one of the strongest activists for Iran government passing a law against acid attacks in January 2019. [9] She has publicly exhibited photographs of her scars. [10] [11]

Sohelia Jorkesh lost her right eye to the acid attack and has been working with medical teams in Iran and the United States to try and preserve what sight she has left in her left eye. Jorkesh has been outspoken regarding her discontent with the government of Iran, including how they failed to find the culprits behind the attacks and how they have not paid her the full amount necessary for the blood money. [5] [12]

Motivation

While many Iranians believed the attackers were conservative Islamist vigilantes trying to intimidate women into wearing (what the vigilantes deemed) modest dress, [13] Iranian officials denied this. The authorities were said to be "particularly angry with any suggestion that attackers were driven by religious extremism, or that victims were targeted because they wore clothing that could be deemed inappropriate in the eyes of hardliners". [14] One "semi-official" plainclothes group, Ansar-e Hezbollah, which has conducted 'morality patrols' to enforce Islamic dress in the past, blamed "the enemy" attempting to "strike a blow against security," for the acid attacks. [15]

Iranian liberals believed the attacks were connected to a parliamentary measure passed October 19, 2014, [16] that “enjoined good and forbade wrong” by providing protection for vigilantes patrolling the streets and helping enforce the country’s strict social mores on public dress or behavior. [13] [17] According to Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, the attacks came "in the midst of a year-long verbal attack by conservative forces in Iran attacking women for their clothes,” giving “verbal warnings and calls that blood must be shed. These are not isolated incidents.” [3]

Reactions

Arrests

Iranian authorities arrested four people suspected of throwing acid on women, according to a report by the official IRNA news agency. [18] But Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli stated that authorities don’t have sufficient evidence to charge any of the suspects in connection to the attacks. [13] As of 2018, no one had been charged in the attacks. As a result, the government has paid blood money to the victims. [6]

Protests

Protest rallies to denounce the attacks were held in Isfahan and the capital Tehran. Mindful of past crackdowns, however, the demonstrators generally dispersed quickly when confronted by police. [2] On October 27, hundreds of Iranian security forces thwarted a planned protest in Tehran to demand tougher government action against the attacks. [13]

Government anger at media reports

Four journalists and a photographer from the Islamic Students' News Agency were arrested after their organization covered the attacks, according to Al-Monitor. The four journalists were released within a day, while photographer Arya Jafari remained in custody. [14] ) One hundred and twenty-nine Iranian journalists signed a letter of protest on October 30, and Jafari was released on bail on October 31, nine days after his arrest. [19] [20]

Interior Minister Fazli declared in late October that “Foreign media are exaggerating about the acid attacks.” [2] On October 28, the chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, Hassan Firouzabadi, said the impact of some media reports was “worse than acid attacks”. [14] Iran’s prosecutor general, Ibrahim Raeesi, has denied that the acid attacks were linked in any way to the state’s policing of morality. [14]

According to Jason Stern of the Committee to Protect Journalists, “this case deals with everything Iranian hardliners can’t stand: critical media coverage, street protests, women’s rights and government accountability.” [14]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 "'Bad hijab' link to acid attacks on Iranian women". AFP. October 19, 2014. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Mostaghim, Ramin (27 October 2014). "Spate of acid attacks against Iranian women and girls prompts protests". LA Times. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  3. 1 2 Grant, Madeline (October 27, 2014). "Iran's Rouhani Promises "Harshest Possible Sentence" for Acid Attack Perpetrators". Newsweek. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  4. ↑ Karimi, Azadeh (29 October 2019). "Iran's Guardian Council Passes Amendment Bill on Acid Attacks, Spokesman Says". Kayhan Life. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  5. 1 2 "Iranian Acid Attack Victim Pursues Legal Fight Despite Claim 'Case Closed'". Voice of America. Retrieved 2019-10-20.
  6. 1 2 "Gov't Pays Blood Money for 2014 Isfahan Acid Attacks as Culprits Not Caught". Iran Front Page. 18 July 2018.
  7. 1 2 "No Justice for Survivors of Acid Attacks in Iran". www.payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-20. Retrieved 2019-10-20.
  8. 1 2 Dehghan, Saeed Kamali (2014-10-20). "Acid attacks in Isfahan have nothing to do with the hijab, say Iranian officials". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2019-10-20.
  9. ↑ "Iran Parliament Makes New Law Against Acid Attacks". RFE/RL. Retrieved 2019-10-20.
  10. ↑ "Acid attack victim pushes for law banning sale of acid in Iran". The Iran Project. 2018-07-04. Retrieved 2019-10-20.
  11. ↑ Dehkordi, Maryam (31 October 2020). "Iranian Women You Should Know: Marzieh Ebrahimi". IranWire. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  12. ↑ Shahrabi, Shima (5 October 2020). "Isfahan Remembers Acid Attacks as Cleric Speaks Out Against "Bad Hijab"". Iran Wire. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Motevalli, Golnar (October 26, 2014). "Iran Plan to Boost Security to End Acid Attacks on Women". Bloomberg. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Dehghan, Saeed Kamali (28 October 2014). "Iranian journalists detained after reporting on acid attacks". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  15. ↑ "Rising Acid Attacks Raise Fears About 'Morality Patrols' In Iran". Huffington Post. Reuters. 5 November 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  16. ↑ Noack, Rick (24 October 2014). "Why President Rouhani is supporting thousands of Iranian protesters". Washington Post. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
  17. ↑ Ioannou, Filipa (28 October 2014). "Iranian Journalists Arrested After Coverage of Acid Attacks Against Women". Slate. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  18. ↑ VAHDAT, AMIR (October 20, 2014). "Iran arrest 4 over acid attack". Associated Press. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  19. ↑ "129 Journalists Sign Letter against Isfahan Arrests". IranWire. 30 October 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  20. ↑ "Reporter who covered Isfahan protests set free on bail". Zamaneh Media. 1 November 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2022.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran</span> State of human rights in Iran since 1979

The state of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran has been criticized by Iranians and international human rights activists, writers, and NGOs. The United Nations General Assembly and the Human Rights Commission have condemned prior and ongoing abuses in Iran in published critiques and several resolutions. The government is criticized both for restrictions and punishments that follow the Islamic Republic's constitution and law, and for "extrajudicial" actions by state actors, such as the torture, rape, and killing of political prisoners, and the beatings and killings of dissidents and other civilians. Capital punishment in Iran remains a matter of international concern.

During the late 20th and early 21st centuries in Iran, women's rights have been severely restricted, compared with those in most developed nations. The World Economic Forum's 2017 Global Gender Gap Report ranked Iran 140, out of 144 countries, for gender parity. In 2017, in Iran, females comprised just 19% of the paid workforce, with seven percent growth since 1990. In 2017, the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Index ranked Iran in the bottom tercile of 153 countries. Compared to other South Asian regions, women in Iran have a better access to financial accounts, education, and cellphones. Iran was ranked 116, out of the 153 countries, in terms of legal discrimination against women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masih Alinejad</span> Iranian-American journalist, writer and activist

Masih Alinejad is an Iranian-American journalist, author, and women's rights activist. Alinejad works as a presenter/producer at VOA Persian Service, a correspondent for Radio Farda, a frequent contributor for Manoto television, and a contributing editor for IranWire. Alinejad focuses on criticism of the status of human rights in Iran, especially women's rights in Iran. Time magazine named her among its 2023 honorees for Women of the Year.

Islamic religious police are official Islamic vice squad police agencies, often in Islamic countries, which enforce religious observance and public morality on behalf of national or regional authorities based on its interpretation of sharia. Modern Islamic religious police forces were first established in the late-1970s amidst the Iranian Revolution and the Islamic revival the revolution brought; prior, the administration of public morality in most Islamic countries was considered a socioreligious matter, and was enforced through application of civil laws or through more informal means.

Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani is an Iranian woman convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and adultery. She gained international notoriety for originally being sentenced to death by stoning for her crimes. Her sentence was commuted and she was released in 2014 after serving nine years on death row.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nasrin Sotoudeh</span> Human rights female lawyer in Iran

Nasrin Sotoudeh is a human rights lawyer in Iran. She has represented imprisoned Iranian opposition activists and politicians following the disputed June 2009 Iranian presidential elections and prisoners sentenced to death for crimes committed when they were minors. Her clients have included journalist Isa Saharkhiz, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi, and Heshmat Tabarzadi. She has also represented women arrested for appearing in public without a hijab, which is a punishable offense in Iran. Nasrin Sotoudeh was the subject of Nasrin, a 2020 documentary filmed in secret in Iran about Sotoudeh's "ongoing battles for the rights of women, children and minorities." In 2021, she was named as of Time's 100 Most Influential People in the World. She was released on a medical furlough in July 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acid attack</span> Form of violent assault

An acid attack, also called acid throwing, vitriol attack, or vitriolage, is a form of violent assault involving the act of throwing acid or a similarly corrosive substance onto the body of another "with the intention to disfigure, maim, torture, or kill". Perpetrators of these attacks throw corrosive liquids at their victims, usually at their faces, burning them, and damaging skin tissue, often exposing and sometimes dissolving the bones. Acid attacks can lead to permanent, partial, or complete blindness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Narges Mohammadi</span> Iranian human rights activist (born 1972)

Narges Mohammadi is an Iranian human rights activist and Nobel laureate. She is the vice president of the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC), headed by her fellow Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Shirin Ebadi. Mohammadi has been a vocal proponent of mass feminist civil disobedience against the hijab in Iran and a vocal critic of the hijab and chastity program of 2023. In May 2016, she was sentenced in Tehran to 16 years' imprisonment for establishing and running "a human rights movement that campaigns for the abolition of the death penalty." She was released in 2020 but sent back to prison in 2021, where she has since given reports of the abuse and solitary confinement of detained women.

Modesty guards or modesty patrols either request or force citizens, mostly women, to dress modestly, depending on the country and the location.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guidance Patrol</span> Islamic religious police in Iran

The Guidance Patrol or morality police is an Islamic religious police force and vice squad in the Law Enforcement Command of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Guidance Patrol enforce Sharia–Islamic law—per laws in Iran; this is most often the enforcement of Islamic dress code, such as ensuring women in the country wear hijabs. The Guidance Patrol was formed in 2005 as a successor organisation to the older Islamic Revolution Committees, and reports to the Supreme Leader.

The Girls of Enghelab protests are protests against the compulsory hijab in Iran, part of the wider Iranian Democracy Movement. The protests were inspired by Vida Movahed, an Iranian woman known as the Girl of Enghelab Street, who stood in the crowd on a utility box on Enghelab Street in Tehran on 27 December 2017 during the 2017–2018 Iranian protests who tied a white headscarf, to a stick, and waved it to the crowd as a flag. She was arrested on that day and was released temporary on bail a month later, on 28 January 2018. Some people interpreted Movahed's action as being based on Masih Alinejad's call for White Wednesdays, a protest movement that the presenter at VOA Persian Television started in early 2017. Other women later re-enacted her protest and posted photos of their actions on social media. These women are described as the "Girls of Enghelab Street" and the "Girls of Revolution Street" in English sources. Some of the protesters however claim that they were not following Masih Alinejad's call. The protests intensified in 2022 due to the death of Mahsa Amini.

Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee or Golrokh Iraee is an Iranian writer, accountant, political prisoner and a human rights defender who advocates against the practice of stoning in Iran. As a religious prisoner of conscience she was represented by Vice Chair of the USCIRF Gayle Manchin.

Aliasghar Honarmand is an Iranian journalist. He is the founder of the gadget news website Narenji.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death of Mahsa Amini</span> Death of a woman following dress code-related arrest in Iran

On 16 September 2022, 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, also known as Jina Amini, died in a hospital in Tehran, Iran, under suspicious circumstances. The Guidance Patrol, the religious morality police of Iran's government, arrested Amini for allegedly not wearing the hijab in accordance with government standards. The Law Enforcement Command of the Islamic Republic of Iran stated that she had a heart attack at a police station, collapsed, and fell into a coma before being transferred to a hospital. However, eyewitnesses, including women who were detained with Amini, reported that she was severely beaten and that she died as a result of police brutality, which was denied by the Iranian authorities. The assertions of police brutality, in addition to leaked medical scans, led some observers to believe Amini had a cerebral hemorrhage or stroke due to head injuries received after her arrest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mahsa Amini protests</span> Iranian protest movement since September 2022

Civil unrest and protests against the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran associated with the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini began on 16 September 2022 and carried on into 2023, but were said to have "dwindled" or "died down" by spring of 2023. As of September 2023, the "ruling elite" of Iran was said to remain "deeply entrenched" in power. The protests were described as "unlike any the country had seen before", the "biggest challenge" to the government, and "most widespread revolt", since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niloofar Hamedi</span> Iranian journalist

Niloofar Hamedi is an Iranian journalist who works for the reformist daily newspaper Shargh. She was arrested during the Mahsa Amini protests for breaking the news about Mahsa Amini and reporting on her treatment by Iran's Morality Police. Hamedi is also known for her work as one of the first journalists to have interviewed the family and lawyer for imprisoned writer Sepideh Rashnu, and she published an investigative report on her case. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2023.

This is a broad timeline of the ongoing series of protests against the government of Iran, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on 16 September 2022. Amini had fallen into a coma after having been detained by the Guidance Patrol, allegedly for wearing an "improper" hijab—in violation of Iran's mandatory hijab law—while visiting Tehran from Saqqez.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Compulsory hijab in Iran</span> Islamic dress code and custom

Hijab in Iran, the traditional head covering worn by Muslim women for modesty for centuries, have been practiced as a compulsion supported by law in Iran after the 1979 revolution. In the 1920s, a few women started to appear unveiled. Under Reza Shah, it was discouraged and then banned in 1936 for five years. Under Reza Shah's successor, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, hijab was considered "backward" and rarely worn by upper and middle-class people. Consequently, it became a symbol of opposition to the shah in 1970s, and was worn by women who previously would have been unveiled.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yalda Moaiery</span> Iranian photographer

Yalda Moaiery is an Iranian photojournalist, she is known for war, protest, natural disaster, and conflict photographs. In 2019, she gained international notoriety after Donald Trump had used one of her photos on social media to support an attack on Iran, which she publicly spoke out on. During the Mahsa Amini protests in 2022, she was one of around twenty journalists arrested in Iran. She is a member of the Iranian Photojournalists Association (IPJA).

Vigilantes or Plainclothesmen (Lebas-shakhsi) in the Islamic Republic of Iran have been called "a prominent part" of the "crackdowns" by the regime on the repeated political protests during the twenty first century in Iran. Men wearing street clothes who appear to be unexceptional civilians but beat protesters, have been called "arguably the most feared and hated" of the forces deployed by the government against protesters.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.