More than 100 students of dozens of educational institutions in Iran have been sickened by the use of poisonous gas multiple times. The president of the country, Hassan Raisi, claims that "foreign forces" are behind the incident. However, ignoring the government`s complaint, the parents protested this incident across the country.
According to a report by the news agency Reuters, it is not yet known why such poison was used in girls` schools. However, the Iranian authorities termed the use of poisonous gas as a `foreign conspiracy`.
On the other hand, Iran`s health minister said that the students suffered mild poisoning. Some of the country`s politicians have complained that radical Islamists who oppose women`s education may be behind the attack.
Iran`s Minister of Interior Abdulreza Rahmani Fazli said that the presence of suspicious elements was found after the samples were collected from the school and an in-depth investigation is underway.
In a statement, he said, `Field-level investigations have yielded suspicious samples, which are being tested to identify the cause of the students` illness. The results will be published as soon as possible.
More than 30 schools in at least 10 of Iran`s 31 provinces were gassed on Saturday (March 4). Videos circulating on social media showed parents gathering in front of the school to take their children home, and some students being taken to hospital by ambulance or bus.
There were also protests in two other places in the capital Tehran. Apart from this, the guardians took part in anti-government protests in Isfahan and Rasht.
Meanwhile, in a speech given on the country`s state television, the president of Iran accused foreigners of fueling the poisoning incident. He claimed those involved in the poisoning were enemies of Iran.
Raisi said that such activities are being conducted to create chaos within the country and create fear among parents and students. However, he did not say anything clearly about who these enemies are.
