Mother of Hospitalized Iranian Teenage Girl Arrested

Iranian security forces have arrested the mother of Armita Geravand, a 16-year-old girl in a coma after reportedly being assaulted by hijab enforcement officers, according to a human rights organization.

The Hengaw group reported that on the evening of October 4 Shahin Ahmadi was apprehended near Fajr Hospital outside Tehran, where the high-school student is being treated, and taken to an undisclosed location.

Security forces reportedly warned the family not to publicize the news of her arrest. 

Armita has been in a coma at Fajr Hospital since October 1, when she sustained a “head trauma” in an incident 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 enforcers.

Official media has published a video in which Shahin Ahmadi says that Armita lost consciousness following a drop in blood pressure.

But Hengaw quoted a relative as saying that she was “forced” to give this interview, which was conducted at Fajr Hospital “under significant duress and in the presence of a substantial number of security forces.”

In another video, Shahin Ahmadi complained that her family had not seen all the CCTV footage from the metro station where the incident occurred.