Continuing the Iran theme this week. This really needs more publicity than it is getting. Iran is similar to Ukraine right now in that both are representin the West in a fight for democracy

This is Asra Panahi. She was a 16 year old girl attending Shahed Girls High School. She was an athlete, a swimmer, and had won a bronze medal; in a competition a few years ago. On October 12, her school was raided by plainclothes security forces, who demanded that the girls in her class sing an anthem that praised Iran’s supreme leader. It was reported that the class and teachers in the scholl refused and started chanting “death to the dictator” The girls were beaten, with 10 of the girls arrested and 12, including Asra taken to hospital, where she later died of her injuries.

The Iran regime later showed an interview of a masked male, claiming to be an uncle of Asra, saying that she had a congenital heart defect. Reports say that the mother, of Asra, said that she had no such thing.. There have been reports of Iran security forces raiding a number of high schools and violently arresting girls and even using tear gas. The Iranian teachers union has condemned the attacks.

Asra’s death has become the new rallying cry for demonstrations, which initially began after the death, in captivity, of 22 year old Mahsa Amini, a month ago. With regard to Elnaz Rekabi, she returned to a jubilant crowd at the Tehran airport. She has since been interviewed and stated that she should never have competed without her hijab. No one is buying her remarks. The belief is that she is being coerced to make those comments.

While a lot of news is being, justifiably so, focused on Ukraine, Iran needs the same focus right now.