Iran’s morality cops kill two more girls, 16 & 17, leaving one with crushed skull in brutal crackdown on hijab protests
TWO more young girls have been killed during the Iran regime's brutal crackdown on hijab protests that have swept the country.
YouTuber Sarina Esmailzadeh, 16, died after security forces beat her round the head with batons, according to Amnesty International.
Her death was reported as officials handed over the body of "fearless" teenager whose family had been searching for her for ten days.
Nika Shahkarmi, 17, went missing during a protest rally in the capital Tehran on September 20.
Atesh Shakrami, Nika's aunt, told BBC Farsi she had left the house with a bottle of water and a towel - which they later realised were to combat tear gas.
In her last phone call to a pal she said she was "running away from security agents".
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That night her Telegram and Instagram accounts were deleted and her mobile phone went dead.
Her family spent the next ten days searching for her in prisons, hospitals and even the mortuary.
Finally they were told a girl matching her description was in the Kahrizak morgue.
Her body showed signs that her skull was fractured and her nose had been smashed, reports say.
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The official cause of death was given as a fall from a height, but relatives do not believe it.
They say a photo of her lifeless body on the pavement shows "the water bottle and mobile phone were arranged next to her for photography."
At least 52 people have been killed in protests across Iran since the death of Mehsa Amini last month, according to Amnesty's figures.
Activists in Iran say the true figure is now more than 300.
Mehsa, 22, from Kurdistan, was arrested by the feared morality police for allegedly wearing a hijab that did not fully cover her hair.
Officials claimed she had a heart attack and was rushed to hospital, but her family said she was beaten into a coma by the guards.
Leaked medical reports claimed she had a skull fracture after a "blow to the head".
Her death sparked furious protests across Iran and defiant women were filmed burning their headscarves as they called for an end to the Ayatollah's regime.
Colonel Ebrahim Khouchakzai is alleged to have taken the girl in for questioning while investigating the murder of one of her neighbours.
He stripped her in his office and forced himself on her, it is claimed.
The girl's family filed a complaint with police and then went to a local media outlet when they say nothing was done.
Now city police have taken three members of her family "hostage" to force them to publicly deny she was raped, according to the latest reports.
Supporters took to the streets demanding justice at the same time as demos raged over Mehsa's death and women's rights.
Panicking authorities shut down social media sites and a large part of the internet in a desperate attempt to quell protests.
Paramilitary police and Revolutionary Guards soldiers have also been ordered to "mercilessly confront" civilians with lethal force.
“The Iranian authorities knowingly decided to harm or kill people who took to the streets to express their anger at decades of repression and injustice," said Amnesty's Agnes Callamard.
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Protests also erupted around the world, and a growing list of politicians and celebrities have voiced their support.
Outrage was stoked further by the alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl by a police commander in the city of Chabahar.
