On Thursday, anti-hijab protesters in Iran asked the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, who is due to conclude a deal with Twitter tomorrow, to ban Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei from the social networking site. Khamenei has been noticed to be using his Twitter account to spread hate against the people who oppose him.
Iranian journalist and activist Masih Alinejad stated on Twitter that while Khamenei has prohibited 83 million Iranians from the micro-blogging platform, he himself is using the network to order assassinations. “Join me and call on @elonmusk to #BanKhamenei Surreal, @khamenei_ir banned 83 million Iranians from Twitter but he himself is allowed to use the same platform to order killings. These days teenagers are getting killed by his regime for protesting against the murder of #MahsaAmini,” she tweeted.
Join me and call on @elonmusk to #BanKhamenei
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) October 27, 2022
Surreal, @khamenei_ir banned 83 million Iranians from Twitter but he himself is allowed to use the same platform to order killings.
These days teenagers are getting killed by his regime for protesting against the murder of #MahsaAmini pic.twitter.com/cvYS5hVPhL
This came a day after the Iranian protesters were seen sitting on their knees in front of armed security forces and shouting, “shoot, we are not afraid of your bullets”. The fearless Iranian youngsters gathered in the Iranian city of Amol to protest against the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini who died on September 16, three days after her arrest in Tehran by the notorious morality police for wearing the hijab inappropriately
The video of the protests was shared by Alinejad on Twitter where she said the she was amazed by the fearlessness shown by the anti-hijab activists. “I am in awe. These unarmed men and women walking towards security forces, one by one they open up their arms and shout; we are not scared of bullets, kill us. This is Amol city where dozens of protesters got killed over the past months”, she said.
I am in awe. These unarmed men and women walking towards security forces, one by one they open up their arms and shout; “we are not scared of bullets, kill us.” This is Amol city where dozens of protesters got killed over the past months. #MahsaAmini#مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/TSU1ddeyzZ
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) October 26, 2022
According to the reports, some of the women activists at Isfahan’s University of Medical Sciences also waved their headscarves as they chanted, “freedom, freedom, freedom”. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people gathered in Saqez, Mahsa Amini’s hometown, to mourn her, despite government threats and barriers. “Woman, life, freedom”, and “Death to the dictator”, they constantly chanted as Iranian security forces opened fire on Wednesday.
In Saqez, the hometown of Mahsa Amini, tens of thousands of people ignored governmental threats and roadblocks and showed up to mourn her on the 40th day of her killing. pic.twitter.com/XU3wbcYi0X
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) October 26, 2022
Notably, Elon Musk has informed co-investors who have agreed to help fund his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter Inc that he intends to complete the transaction by Friday. Musk’s attorneys have provided the necessary papers for the financial commitment to equity investors such as Sequoia Capital, Binance, Qatar Investment Authority, and others.
Mahsa Amini’s custodial death sparks anti-hijab protests across Iran
According to the reports, 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was abducted by the ‘morality police’ in Tehran for not complying with the mandatory hijab laws of the country. Amini, who was on a pleasure trip to Tehran, had not covered her hair properly under the hijab. She was arrested by the police and then beaten in the police van while being taken to a detention centre, dubbed as a ‘re-education class’ for not conforming to the country’s mandatory hijab rules.
The police took her to the police station on Vozara Avenue where already dozens of other women were being held for not following the hijab rules. They beat the women and schooled them about the proper dress rules of the country. Mahsa was brutally beaten and taken to the hospital after she stopped responding in the custody. The doctors at the hospital stated that her heart continued to beat but her brain was no longer functioning. She breathed her last three days after the incident.
Her killing has sparked massive protests in Iran, with women taking to the streets to raise their voices against the regime. Several ladies, including school-going girls, burnt their hijabs in her support, while women throughout the world trimmed their hair as part of the protest. Protests erupted in dozens of places around Iran in the aftermath of her death after which the government retaliated with a harsh crackdown.
However, weeks after the death of Amini, Iran’s Forensic Organisation revealed a report stating that the woman had died due to illness and not due to blows and beatings given to her in police custody. Earlier, the Police had also tried to cover up the matter claiming that Mahsa was already suffering from a heart problem and that she was never beaten in the custody.
