Girl students in Iran poisoned to stop them from going to school, says report

The serial poisoning of girl students in the city of Qom and other cities has been "intentional", said Iran’s deputy education minister on Sunday. Younes Panahi said "it was found that some people wanted all schools, especially girls' schools, to be closed," reported Iran International.

"It has been revealed that the chemical compounds used to poison students are not war chemicals, and the poisoned students do not need aggressive treatment, and a large percentage of the chemical agents used are treatable," he told a press conference.

Girl students 'intentionally' poisoned to stop them from going to school: Iran Minister

While addressing the media, Homayoun Sameh Najafabadi, a member of the health committee of the parliament, confirmed the development and said the female students of Qom and Borujerd were intentionally poisoned. Earlier, Youssef Nouri, the minister of education, called the reports about the poisoning of female students "rumors", claiming that the students who were admitted to the hospital had "underlying diseases." However, the health and education department on Sunday confirmed that at least 50 students of a high school in Borjerd Western Iran were poisoned. 

According to the report, the serial poisoning of the students in Iran started back in December in the city of Qom, and gradually it spread to several other cities. Up until now, a government official has not determined the cause of the poisonings, but some local media have claimed that it could be the work of religious zealots who want to prevent girls from attending school.

This development has come at a time when the country has already witnessed a massive protest against the government over the strict implementation of hijab on women. Several teenage schoolgirls had also joined the antigovernment protests last year, and many removed their hijabs in protest. The authorities detained several protestors, while dozens of people were reported dead due to the clash with authorities during the protest.