Iranian girls fall ill after being 'intentionally poisoned' to stop them going to school

Iranian officials initially dismissed these incidents, but now describe them as intentional attacks involving around 30 schools identified in local media

Hundreds of girls have fallen ill at schools in Iran (stock image) (

Image: AFP via Getty Images

Hundreds of girls have fallen ill in schools in Iran and it is due to "deliberate poisoning" aimed at closing girls' schools, a senior Iranian official has said.

Younes Panahi, Iran's deputy health minister, told reporters that 'some individuals had called for the closure of all schools, especially girls' schools' and deliberately poisoned students with 'chemical compounds' , reported the Fars news agency.

Iranian officials initially dismissed the incidents, but are now describing them as intentional attacks involving some 30 schools identified in local media.

About 15 schoolgirls were reportedly hospitalized with symptoms of poisoning in Qom, 160 km south of Tehran.

While the governor of Borujerd in western Iran announced that 82 students had been hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning.

Iranian women protests (

Picture:

CGU/AFP via Getty Images)

At least 14 schools in four cities have reported similar experiences, including Tehran and the northwestern city of Ardabil, according to Etemad, the Iranian daily.

Video shared online showed a row of ambulances parked outside a school as paramedics attended to young women, some of whom were lying on the ground.

Children complain of headaches, heart palpitations, and feeling lethargic or otherwise unable to move. Some have described the smell of tangerine, chlorine, or cleaning agents.

Many schools are heated with natural gas, suggesting that carbon monoxide poisoning could affect the country's education...