INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Iran&s supreme leader said on Monday that if a series of suspected poisonings at girls& schools are proven to be deliberate the culprits
should be sentenced to death for committing an &unforgivable crime.&It was the first time Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the
final say on all matters of state, has spoken publicly about the suspected poisonings, which began late last year and have led to hundreds
of children falling ill, Associated Press reported.Iranian officials only acknowledged the poisonings in recent weeks and have provided no
details on who may be behind the attacks or what chemicals & if any & have been used
Iran has no history of religious extremists targeting women&s education.&If the poisoning of students is proven, those behind this crime
should be sentenced to capital punishment and there will be no amnesty for them,& Khamenei said, according to the state-run IRNA news
agency.Authorities have acknowledged suspected attacks at more than 50 schools across 21 of Iran&s 30 provinces since November.Iran&s
Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said over the weekend that &suspicious samples& had been gathered by investigators, without elaborating
He called on the public to remain calm and accused unnamed enemies of inciting fear to undermine the Islamic Republic.Vahidi said at least
52 schools had been affected by suspected poisonings, while Iranian media reports have put the number of schools at over 60
At least one boy&s school reportedly has been affected.Videos of upset parents and schoolgirls in emergency rooms with IVs in their arms
have flooded social media, AP reported.Iran has imposed stringent restrictions on independent media since the outbreak of nationwide
protests in September, making it difficult to determine the nature and scope of the suspected poisonings.On Monday, Iranian media reported
that authorities arrested a Qom-based journalist, Ali Pourtabatabaei, who had been regularly reporting on the suspected poisonings.The
children affected in the poisonings have reportedly complained of headaches, heart palpitations, feeling lethargic or otherwise unable to
Some described smelling tangerines, chlorine or cleaning agents.Reports suggest at least 400 schoolchildren have fallen ill since November
Vahidi, the interior minister, said in his statement that two girls remain in hospital because of underlying chronic conditions
There have been no reported fatalities.As more attacks were reported Sunday, videos were posted on social media showing children complaining
about pain in the legs, abdomen and dizziness
State media have mainly referred to these as &hysteric reactions.&The post School poisonings, if deliberate, deserve death: Iran leader
first appeared on Ariana News.
