Sunday witnessed widespread protests world over in front of Iranian embassies following the death of young Iranian woman Mahsa Amini.
Amini (22), was arrested on Sep 13th 2022 after being accused of breaking Iran’s sharia law. The Islamic state of Iran, formed after the Islamic revolution of 1979 has a strict sharia law that mandates wearing of hijabs by all women above the age of 9. Three days after the arrest, Amini died in police custody. While Iranian authorities have cited “sudden heart failure” as the cause of death, family members and human rights activists have rejected the claim and instead blamed custodial violence for the death.
ALSO READ : Iran protests: Oscar winner Asghar Farhadi calls for solidarity
Ever since, 41 people have died in Iran as per official figures, most of them believed to be protestors. However, Norway-based Iran Human rights (IHR) claims that the death toll has at least been 57. There have been vibrant protests both inside and outside Iran, condemning the theocratic extravaganzas of the Islamic state of Iran.
On Sunday, London was a witness to protests in front of the Iranian embassy.
“While the majority of those who attended the embassy on Sunday continued to act responsibly, a significant group who arrived actively sought to confront the officers and protestors from groups they were not in agreement with,” read the twitter post of the Metropolitan Police. At least 5 officers were seriously injured, the Met police said and 12 have been arrested on suspicion of violent offences.
ALSO READ : Indian Muslims’ forum hits out at Iran over woman’s death, slams ‘hypocrisy’ of country’s clergy
Similar protests also erupted in other places like Paris and Athens. In Paris, peaceful protests began from Trocadero square. However, when the protests approached the Iranian embassy, the police fired tear gas and used anti riot tactics to disperse the crowd.
In Athens, 200 people had gathered at Syntagma square to protest against the course of events in Iran following Mahsa’s death. As per police reports, at 1 AM local time, two masked people on a motorbike hurled a cocktail bomb at the embassy. However, it has failed to cause any damage.
