Another woman defying Iran’s mandatory hijab-wearing laws has reportedly been killed by the Islamic Republic’s security forces, after facing officers during a protest without her hair covered.
Twenty-year old Hadis Najafi ignited global attention after footage of her tying up her blonde hair as she prepared to confront police officers in the city of Karaj went viral last week.
On Sunday, Iranian journalist Masih Alinejad reported that Najafi was shot to death during the protests.
On Twitter, Alinejad announced: “Hadis Najafi 20 Yr old girl must become another symbol like #MahsaAmini, because she didn’t keep silent in the face of tyranny. She got killed for the crime of protesting the brutal death of Mahsa. I call on world to be the voice of #HadisNajafi too. A true hero.”
Alinejad shared footage taken from Najafi’s funeral, adding that the young victim was “a kind hearted girl and loved dancing.”
Najafi’s death comes as demonstrations continue to sweep the country and the number of civilian casualties continues to rise.
Across several cities, including the capital, Tehran, security forces are turning increasingly violent, arresting hundreds of protesters and opening fire.
According to Iran’s broadcaster IRIB, at least 41 people, including three children, have been killed by security forces since the start of protests, which was triggered by the death of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini who died of injuries reportedly inflicted while she was in police custody.
On Saturday, the police chief of the north-western province of Guilan announced that 739 people – including 60 women – have been detained by security forces in his region.
According to US-based media watchdog, Committee to Protect Journalists, up to eleven journalists have been detained since last Monday.
Over the weekend, Iran’s Interior Ministry reiterated they were not to blame for Amini’s death, insisting that she’d died of heart failure at a police station where she was being held.
Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi told reporters, “Reports from oversight bodies were received, witnesses were interviewed, videos were reviewed, forensic opinions were obtained and it was found that there had been no beating.”
Across the country of 84 million, women have been burning their veils in public displays of defiance and cutting their hair in protest against the mandatory dress codes requiring women to wear a hijab.
According to the country’s state media, President Ebrahim Raisi said the country must “deal decisively with those who oppose the country’s security and tranquillity.”
Around the world, solidarity protests have been taking place to show support for the women in Iran. Protests have spurred in cities across the US, including Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Florida, California, and Washington. One female demonstrator from Virginia told CNN she was protesting to show solidarity with the women in Iran who are “ready to overthrow this regime despite the cost.”
“People of Iran are in the process of another revolution,” Majid Sadeghpour, a political director at the Organisation of Iranian-American Communities, said.
“The regime has been declining for years and now is literally falling. We call on the international community to sever ties with this regime and instead support the Iranian people and their organised resistance.”
Protests in Greece, Germany, Belgium, Turkey and Spain have also made international headlines. Closer to home, demonstrations have taken place in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney.
In Sydney, hundreds of people gathered outside Town Hall last night, holding signs that read, “Women, Life, Freedom” and “#MahsaAmini”.
In Perth, Mehdi Ghatei organised a rally to give voice to the people of Iran.
“People are voiceless in Iran,” Ghatei told ABC. “They don’t have media, they don’t have anything. They are coming to the street with empty hands.”
“They are just asking us, that are living in a free country, ‘just be our voice’. With empty hands, people are just protesting against the hijab and against the regime change and (for) basic human rights, but they are killing them with military forces.”
“Tell everyone in the world what is happening currently in Iran. It’s really crucial, we need to stop this regime, we need to stop the mass killing.”