Iran's State Media Accuses Opposition Of Lying About Comatose Girl
Iran's state television has again accused opposition media of spreading false information about a girl falling into a coma after an alleged assault by hijab enforcers.
In its Thursday evening news bulletin, IRIB’s News Channel aired footage released on Wednesday showing Armita Geravand entering a Tehran subway station without covering her hair, waiting with friends, and then being carried out of a metro car unconscious by her friends after collapsing seconds after entering.
State media claims the sixteen-year-old art student fainted, fell, and hit her head on the metro car's entrance. Armita's mother, Shahin Ahmadi, stated in an interview with IRIB that she was "told" her daughter hit her head "on the edge of the metro [car or platform]." Earlier reports suggested she was pushed by a hijab enforcer inside the metro car, causing her fall and head injury.
Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, a Kurdish rights group that published the comatose Armita’s photo at Fajr hospital’s intensive care unit Wednesday, claimed on Thursday that security forces have detained Armita’s mother. Mizan Online, the news agency of Iran’s Judiciary, denied the report shortly after its release.
Another young woman beaten into coma for not wearing her Hijab properly.
— Hannah Neumann (@HNeumannMEP) October 4, 2023
Another journalist threatened for reporting about it.
Another family member in prison for speaking up.
How many more does it need for @JosepBorrellF to revise the 🇪🇺 #Iran Policy?#ArmitaGaravand https://t.co/GHusSHsCjH
Security is tense around the hospital, and authorities are not forthcoming about the circumstances surrounding Armita's coma. Meanwhile, the media is filled with concerns from Iranians, foreign activists, and officials, all fearing a scenario similar to Mahsa Amini's death could reoccur.
Mother of Armita Geravand, the teen allegedly beaten by morality police, was reportedly arrested a day after claiming her daughter collapsed from low blood sugar
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) October 5, 2023
'This is all part of the regime's playbook; they deflect and deny,' Jason M Brodsky tells Laura Cellier pic.twitter.com/dZMVPm2Jlq
Iranians have been extensively posting to raise awareness about Armita, making the hashtag of her name in Persian trendy on X (formerly Twitter) with well over 300,000 retweets.
Despite the IRIB's account and interviews with Armita's parents and friends, many in the public remain unconvinced. Social media users believe that state media is concealing the true cause of her head injury to prevent public anger, similar to the 2022 protests following the death of Mahsa Amini in morality police custody.
The state media have not shown any footage from inside the metro car and claim there were no CCTVs to record the incident inside the train.
Two eyewitnesses have, however, confirmed to the Guardian that hijab enforcers were involved in Armita’s injury Sunday morning.
Unconfirmed sources in Iran are reporting that #ArmitaGaravand suffered a cardiac arrest yesterday at 3 pm due to brain death. That is reportedly why her mother demanded to visit her and the Islamic Republic officers did not allow her, arresting the mother instead. The entire… pic.twitter.com/OSTBWtf8tS
— Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر (@emilykschrader) October 5, 2023
One of the two eyewitnesses has told the Guardian that soon after Armita entered the carriage, a female hijab enforcer started arguing with her because she wasn’t wearing a headscarf. “The chador-clad woman screamed at her asking her why she was not covered,” the witness told the Guardian.
“Armita then told her ‘Do I ask you to remove your hijab? Why are you asking me to wear one?’ Their argument then turned violent. The hijab enforcer started physically attacking Armita and … violently pushed her.”
🛑 If CCTV footage suddenly appears, it is highly suspect. As the Islamic Republic’s state stenographer has said they already inquired about the footage and were told those specific trains do not have CCTV cameras in them. #ارمیتا_گراوند #ArmitaGeravand https://t.co/fhTJOag9f9 pic.twitter.com/jhJhbPFUfa
— Samira Mohyeddin سمیرا (@SMohyeddin) October 5, 2023
Another witness told the Guardian that the young girl was still conscious when she fell on the ground. In the video footage shown on state television Armita’s leg appears to be moving.
Witnesses who spoke to the Guardian also claimed they spotted the same hijab enforcer waiting behind the ambulance that took her to the hospital.
Unbelievable. And now the mother has been arrested.
— Omid Djalili (@omid9) October 5, 2023
Interview orchestrated by Islamic Republic State media with a woman posing as a “relative” of #Armita_Garavand
Watch how Armita’s mother is unable to hide her disgust. The regime have put her daughter in a coma and she… pic.twitter.com/l3cbUHgMLn
Iranian activists and social media users argue that security forces' efforts to restrict access to the hospital, detain a reporter who attempted to interview Armita's mother, and suppress independent media suggest they are trying to conceal the truth about the alleged assault on the young girl.
Sanction Khamenei under EO 13553 for human rights abuses. https://t.co/PzjJaEmCfY
— Jason Brodsky (@JasonMBrodsky) October 4, 2023
The interviews with Armita's family were aired during the 8:30 news program on Wednesday. The program's producer, Ameneh Sadat Zabihpour, has faced allegations of collaborating with intelligence organizations to obtain forced "confessions" from activists and others, discrediting them, opposition figures, and groups. Zabihpour and her colleague Ali Rezvani were sanctioned by the United States Treasury in November last year for their involvement in obtaining forced confessions.
This street graffiti inside Iran, shows defiance of a women protesting against hijab police beating #ArmitaGaravand 16 year old girl into coma.
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) October 5, 2023
She says: if anything happened to Armita, regime’s leader Ali Khamenei is responsible because he’s the one imposing hijab on us. pic.twitter.com/owNT0JURNg