Iranian Authorities Threaten Classmates of Hospitalized Girl

Iranian authorities are subjecting teachers and pupils at Armita Geravand’s school to immense pressure as part of efforts to control the information surrounding the hospitalization of the 16-year-old girl.

Armita has been in a coma at Fajr Air Force Hospital outside Tehran since October 1, when she sustained a “head trauma” in a Tehran subway station, according to information obtained by IranWire.

The authorities say the teenager fainted due to "a loss of blood pressure," but reports suggest Armita was physically assaulted by hijab enforcement officers.

"Today, the Ministry of Education's security director visited Armita Geravand's school and threatened her teachers," the Coordination Council of Iran Educators said on October 4. “He emphasized that sharing any news or photos of Armita Geravand on social media by her teachers would result in heavy fines and the immediate termination of their contracts.”

And on October 2, the council said the security director of the education directorate of Tehran province also went to the school to threaten the teachers and pupils against “sharing any information” about Armita’s condition. 

It also said that Armita's classmates have been coerced into appearing in front of cameras to deny reports she had been beaten by officers.

The official IRNA news agency released a video where two of Armita's classmates say she fainted in the subway, repeating the government's version of events.

The human rights organization Hengaw, which shared a picture of Armina in her hospital bed, has reported, that the mobile phones of all members of the Geravand family had been seized by security agents.