Iran has been in a state of tension for the past few days after more than 900 schoolgirls were found mysteriously poisoned.
Over the past three months, hundreds of schoolgirls have been poisoned by poison, sparking alarm in Iran.
900 school girls
At least 900 schoolgirls have been poisoned so far. On November 30, Iranian state media reported that 18 schoolgirls from a high school in Qom were hospitalized for the first time due to poisoning. Most of them were discharged from the hospital shortly after, but had to be monitored for several days.
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After that, several cases of poisoning of schoolgirls in several cities in Iran emerged. Last week, reports emerged that 35 people were hospitalized after schoolgirls were poisoned in the capital Tehran on Tuesday.
What is even more shocking is that there is still no clarity on how these girls are poisoned. There is no official confirmation of the number of poisoned students, but it is believed to be in the hundreds as several cities have reported the problem for more than four months.
Symptoms of mysterious poisoning
Students often reported experiencing strange odors before becoming ill, saying they smelled like rotten tangerine or strong perfume.
Some local media reported that the students claimed to have seen strange objects being thrown on the school premises before being victimized.
Symptoms include headaches and nausea, and local media reported that some students experienced temporary paralysis in their limbs.
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Younes Panahi, Iran’s deputy health minister in charge of research and technology, said on February 26 that the poisons were “chemical” in nature but not compound chemicals used in warfare and that the symptoms were not infectious, IRNA reported.
According to IRNA, Panahi said what appeared to be deliberate poisoning attempts to target and close down girls’ schools.
An inquiry has been ordered
The Parliamentary Education Committee has ordered an inquiry into this. The committee said in a report that poison used in some schools was found to contain nitrogen gas.
President Ebrahim Raisi on Wednesday ordered the Ministry of Home Affairs to continue monitoring the affected students. Iran’s police chief, Ahmad Reza Radan, said that no one had been arrested in connection with the incident.
Many officials have suggested that foreign adversaries may have carried out the attacks in an attempt to smear Iran.