Iran President Ebrahim Raisi Dies, Highlighting Controversial Legacy

What's the story?

• Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter crash, state media reported on Monday. 
• Other government officials, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amiradollahian, were also killed in the crash. While the Iranian media has given no immediate cause for the crash, the helicopter was traveling in foggy conditions through a mountainous area. 

Raisi's legacy

• President Raisi was a controversial, ultraconservative Iranian leader. After becoming president in 2021, he promised affordable housing, reduced inflation, and a fight against corruption. Despite this, the economic situation in Iran has worsened over the last few years.  
• Raisi was widely disliked by many Iranians before his presidency, primarily for his role in the mass execution of political prisoners in the 1980s, where he was part of the "death committee." More than 5,000 political prisoners were executed during this time. Much of the public had hoped that Raisi would face justice in an international court for his crimes against humanity. 
• Raisi has also had a leading role in the suppressive Islamic regime, requiring strict dress codes for women. He upheld former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's "morality police," who exist to ensure that women conform to the authorities' interpretation of "proper" clothing. Officers stop and assess women for how much of their hair is showing, how close-fitting or short their clothing is, and their use of make-up. If an officer believes a woman is violating the rule, the punishment can include a fine, prison, or flogging. Multiple women have died at the hands of the officers. 

Mahsa Amini

• Mahsa Amini was arrested in 2022 for not properly covering her hair with a hijab, which is mandatory for Iranian women. While in custody, she fell into a coma and died three days later. Human rights activists believe she was beaten by police, and her injuries ultimately led to her death. 
• Amini's father told an Iranian news source that he was not allowed to see the security footage of her arrest, detainment, transfer to the hospital, or her body, but was told by multiple witnesses that she was aggressively shoved into a police car. He reported that he managed to get a glimpse of bruising on her foot.
• The UN's Al-Nashif said there were reports that morality police officers beat Amini on the head with a baton and banged her head against one of their vehicles. The police denied that she was mistreated and said she had "sudden heart failure" after being taken to the station to be "convinced and educated." Her family said she was healthy before detainment and denied any heart conditions.

Armita Geravand

• In 2023, 16-year-old Armita Geravand was knocked unconscious by the morality police on her way to school for not wearing a hijab and died days later. The Iranian government claimed she fainted and hit her head due to a drop in blood sugar. However, released security footage from the train station shows Geravand stepping onto the subway car and, moments later, being dragged out unconscious and laid on the train platform.
• Journalist Farzad Seifikaran interviewed four people close to the matter who said Geravand and two of her friends, who also were not wearing hijabs, were arguing with morality officers. The witnesses claimed one agent pushed Geravand, and she fell and hit her head, triggering cerebral hemorrhaging. 

#WomanLifeFreedom - Here's How You Can Support Iran

Iranians have protested hijab laws and the morality police on a number of occasions in recent years, giving rise to movements including  My Stealthy Freedom, White Wednesdays, Girls of Revolution Street, and "Women Life Freedom."

Learn more about women's rights in Iran and what you can do to help here.

-Jamie Epstein

(Photo Credit: Flickr/15th BRICS SUMMIT)