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Even as Saturday marked the first anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, a progressive Iranian woman who stood up against the draconian Hijab rule and whose alleged custodial death sparked furious protests,the Iranian authorities detained her father, CNN reported citing Iranian journalists and rights group.
Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman, died last September after being detained by the regimes infamous morality police and taken to a re-education centre, allegedly for failing to wear her headscarf properly. According to an Iranian journalist, Amini's father, Amjad, was regularly summoned by the security officers in recent months following her daughter's death. Today he was detained for a few hours, CNN reported, citing the journalist. Amini's family visited her grace in the western Kurdish city of Saqqez on the eve of the one-year anniversary of her death, CNN reported citing IranWire. However, following that day, Amjad was detained by the authorities for three to four hours with his son. Moreover, Amjad's son was warned that he would be banished to a remote village if he encouraged people to attend Amini's death anniversary ceremonies, the report claimed. However, Iranian authorities denied reports of Amjad's detention. IRNA, Iran's local media outlet, described the reports as "false" in a Telegram post, according to CNN. Earlier, on Tuesday, Amini's uncle, Sada Aeli, was apprehended by the Iranian authorities, according to a member of her family and reports from the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA). Amini's death triggered the largest protests Iran had witnessed in years, turning into a larger social movement with demonstrators protesting the regime's treatment of women among other issues as well. Earlier, on Saturday, over 20 Iranian individuals and entities connected to the harsh repression of protests after Amini's death a year ago were subjected to penalties by the Joe Biden administration on Friday, reported CNN. The newest round of sanctions was in retaliation for Tehran's ruthless crackdown on the demonstrators, who took to the streets after Amini passed away while in the custody of Iran's morality police. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the State Department was taking steps "to impose visa restrictions on 13 Iranian officials and other individuals for their involvement in the detention or killing of peaceful protestors or the inhibition of their rights to freedom of expression or assembly", CNN reported. Notably, many Iranian women have chosen to start showing their hair from under the hijab since the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022. Iranian celebrities, athletes and actresses have been following suit in solidarity. (ANI)
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