Clashes Reported as Protesters Gather at Iranian Universities

International

Iranian students demonstrated at dozens of universities Sunday as protests sparked by the death of a young woman in police custody continued.

There were some reports of clashes between demonstrators and security services.

At Tehran’s Islamic Azad University, plainclothes forces armed with rifles and sticks attacked a large gathering of students, VOA’s Persian service reported.

Protests in Iran erupted after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.

The Kurdish woman was detained in the capital, Tehran, September 13 for allegedly wearing her head scarf — or hijab — “improperly.” She died while custody three days later, with police reporting she had a heart attack. Her family says she had no history of heart trouble.

Rights groups say more than 200 people have died during the protests and hundreds, if not thousands, have been arrested. Analysts say the protests have become one of the most serious challenges to the Islamic Republic in its history.__VOANews