VOA – As schools in Iran reopen after the new year holiday, female students are again being targeted by chemical attacks.
It is not immediately clear who is responsible for the poisonings, but some Iranians suspect that their own government is the likely culprit.
The attacks have targeted schools across the country and students are poisoned by unknown substances that spread through the buildings, according to media reports. Some of the victims have been admitted to hospitals with shortness of breath and other respiratory symptoms.SEE ALSO:20 Iranian Schoolgirls Hospitalized After Suspected Poisoning
The poisonings began shortly after the start of a protest movement in Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who died in custody after being arrested by Iran’s morality police for failing to wear her hijab properly.SEE ALSO:At Least 537 Killed in Iran Protest Crackdown, Rights Group Says
Itan’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called for those responsible for the poisonings to be identified and punished.