US “Deeply Saddened” by Iranian Teenager’s Death after Hijab Encounter

US national-security advisor Jake Sullivan has spoken of his deep sadness over the death of a 16-year-old Iranian girl who fell into a coma early this month after being assaulted at a Tehran metro station for not wearing a headscarf.

“I am deeply saddened to learn that Armita Geravand has died after being beaten by Iran’s morality police for not wearing a hijab in public,” Sullivan said on October 29 on the social media platform X. 

“Iran’s state-sponsored violence against its own people is appalling and underscores the fragility of the regime,” he added.

I am deeply saddened to learn that Armita Geravand has died after being beaten by Iran’s morality police for not wearing a hijab in public. Iran’s state sponsored violence against its own people is appalling and underscores the fragility of the regime.

— Jake Sullivan (@JakeSullivan46) October 29, 2023

German Foreign Minister Baerbock also expressed her dismay at Armita's death and said on X: “The future of Iran is its youth. The future of Iran is its women. The regime cannot suppress their desire for freedom.”

Armita Garawand war erst 16. Ein Kind, eine Schülerin - ein ganzes Leben lag noch vor ihr. Die Brutalität des Regimes hat ihre Zukunft geraubt.

Die Zukunft Irans ist seine Jugend. Die Zukunft Irans sind seine Frauen. Ihren Drang nach Freiheit kann das Regime nicht unterdrücken.

— Außenministerin Annalena Baerbock (@ABaerbock) October 28, 2023

Armita was declared brain dead a week ago and died on October 28. She had been in a coma in Tehran’s Fajr Military Hospital since October 1 after losing consciousness on the city’s metro. 

The authorities said Armita had fallen and injured her head after suffering a sudden drop in blood pressure. 

But reports indicated that the teenager, whose headscarf was draped over her shoulders, was pushed by a woman wearing a full Islamic chador, or head and body covering.

Footage from inside the train has not been released, despite evidence suggesting that the train car had CCTV cameras.

Armita was buried amid tight security in Tehran on October 29. 

Civil rights activist Reza Khandan told IranWire that his wife, prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, was among several people detained during the ceremony at the Behesht-e Zahra cemetery.

Armita’s death came just over a year after the death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini following her arrest for allegedly wearing her headscarf "improperly."

The tragedy triggered protests that spread across the country and rapidly escalated into calls for the overthrow of Iran’s four-decade-old Islamic theocracy.

Authorities responded with a brutal crackdown in which more than 500 people were killed and over 22,000 others were unlawfully detained, according to activists.

The European Union, the United States and other countries have issued multiple rounds of sanctions against the Islamic Republic in recent months over its clampdown on dissent. 

Sullivan said that the United States “will continue to press for the rights of women and girls, and work with the international community to hold Iran accountable for the violations of the Iranian people’s human rights.”

The United States will continue to press for the rights of women and girls, and work with the international community to hold Iran accountable for the violations of the Iranian people’s human rights.

— Jake Sullivan (@JakeSullivan46) October 29, 2023