Tehran: Hundreds of schoolgirls in several cities in Iran have been hospitalized in recent weeks after being poisoned by gas, causing an outpouring of anger and confusion across the country, Iranian media reported.
Videos circulated on Iranian social media platforms, on Wednesday, show families of female students gathering in front of some schools that poison their students.
The circulated videos also showed the presence of ambulances in front of these schools to transport the poisoned students to hospitals, in addition to a state of panic and crying in some schools.
Iran International channel published a video showing the protest of the poisoned female students’ families.
The channel quoted the mother of one of the students at Yarjani School as saying, “School officials say only, ‘Come and take your daughters,’ while the police just watched and did nothing.”
Although the incidents were reported across the country, the majority of cases were from the city of Qom.
As per Iranian media reports, it all started on November 30, 2022 in the city of Qom, south of Tehran, when about 60 female students fell ill and had to be hospitalized. Most were released after a short time, but many were held under observation for several days.
There are no confirmed figures on how many students have been sickened, but the numbers are thought to be many hundreds.
BBC Persian reported that up to 800 students in Qom have been poisoned so far, and that a number of cases have been detected in the capital, Tehran.
While some boys appear to have fallen ill, the vast majority of cases appear to have been in girls’ schools. No deaths have been reported.
A doctor who treated some of the poisoned students told Middle East Eye (MEE) that the victims “smelled like sewage and salt, and had symptoms of dizziness, nausea and difficulty breathing.”
Iran’s Students’ News Agency reported that Iran’s health minister, Bahram Einollahi, said on a visit to Qom on Tuesday that the poison was “very mild” and that the students’ symptoms included muscle weakness, lethargy and nausea.
According to the Associated Press, some children described smelling tangerines, chlorine, or cleaning supplies.
However, so far, no one has been able to pinpoint who is responsible, with some suggesting an attempt by ultra-conservatives to disrupt girls’ education and others pointing to anti-government opposition groups.
The poisoning incidents in Iranian schools come shortly after widespread protests have taken place in Iran since September 2022, against the backdrop of the death of the 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, days after she was detained by the morality police on charges of not adhering to the standards of compulsory headscarf.
Women played a crucial role in the protests, chant, “Women, Life, Freedom”, as girls staged protests in their schools and removed the compulsory headscarves.
