Heavy security reported in central Tehran
Security forces deployed heavily around Tehran’s Valiasr Square on Wednesday as Iran marked the third anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody, according to videos shared online.
Mahsa’s father denounces Kayhan report as ‘blatant lie’
The father of Mahsa Jina Amini on Wednesday sharply rejected a report in the state-aligned Kayhan newspaper that quoted Revolutionary Guard deputy Mohammadreza Naghdi as saying a relative had given his daughter drugs, calling the account “a blatant and shameless lie.”
Amjad Amini wrote on Instagram that Iran’s forensic authorities had never made such a claim, accusing those who publish the story of manufacturing falsehoods with the state’s vast propaganda resources.
Amini warned the authors to “be ashamed” and wrote that the blood of his innocent daughter would hold them to account, echoing longstanding family criticism of official accounts of the 22-year-old’s death in morality-police custody in September 2022.
Mahsa Amini’s death sparked nationwide protests in Iran and remains a focal point of domestic and international scrutiny; state and independent accounts have offered sharply different versions of the events surrounding her detention and death.
Night chants of ‘death to dictator’ echo in Tehran on Amini anniversary
Residents of Tehran chanted “Death to the dictator” and “Woman, Life, Freedom” from rooftops and windows on Tuesday night, marking the third anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death in police custody, according to videos shared online.
Women’s oppression inseparable from political tyranny, rights lawyer says
Prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh said political tyranny in the Middle East is inseparable from the systematic violation of women’s rights, in a message to a Woman, Life, Freedom gathering in Germany marking the anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death.
Sotoudeh described Amini as a symbol of women victimized by authoritarian rule, saying violence against women in Iran had become part of daily life, both in public and private spheres.
She compared conditions for women in Iran, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia, blaming entrenched patriarchy for sustaining regional autocracies.
She added that Iranian women are openly defying mandatory veiling laws despite the risk of prosecution, making the fight for freedom of dress a central part of everyday resistance.
Sotoudeh said men have also joined the movement, as the system has harmed their lives and freedoms as well.
US Senate foreign relations chair honors Mahsa Amini, condemns Iran’s repression
US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch on Tuesday praised the courage of Iranians who have challenged their government, three years after the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody sparked nationwide protests.
“Today we remember Mahsa Amini and the Iranian people’s courage to stand up against the oppressive Iranian regime,” Risch, a Republican senator from Idaho, wrote on X.
He accused Tehran of “prioritizing and exporting terror” over addressing domestic needs, saying, “The Iranian people are the longest-suffering victims of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
South Australia parliament hosts memorial for Mahsa Amini
The parliament of South Australia held a memorial on Tuesday marking the third anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini in Iranian police custody.
Iranian activists and Australian politicians attended the event, voicing support for the Iranian people’s demands for freedom and democracy.
OPINIONExecution of Babak Shahbazi on Mahsa Amini anniversary is a ‘political show’
Iranian human rights lawyer Saeid Dehghan has condemned the execution of Babak Shahbazi on the anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death, calling it a “political show.”
Dehghan, who heads the Iran Oral History of Human Rights project, said the timing was intentional and echoed previous cases.
He added that the execution of Majid Kourkour was carried out on the birthday of Kian Pirfalak, a child killed during the 2022 protests sparked by Amini’s death in police custody.
Rights groups have accused Iranian authorities of using executions to intimidate protesters and silence dissent since the nationwide Woman, Life, Freedom uprising.
Watch: Toronto honors Mahsa Amini with bench and tree memorial
The municipality of Richmond Hill, located north of Toronto, Canada, has unveiled a bench and a tree in memory of Mahsa Amini on the anniversary of her death.
The commemorative installation was placed in the grounds of the city’s central library.
Richmond Hill is home to a significant Iranian community and has repeatedly served as a gathering place for demonstrations against the Islamic Republic.
Tehran slams US ‘hypocrisy’ over Mahsa Amini anniversary message
Iran condemned the United States on Tuesday for what it called “hypocritical and deceitful” remarks on the anniversary of a young Iranian woman's death in morality police custody in 2022, accusing Washington of decades of crimes and subversion.
“No rational and patriotic Iranian would ever believe the claim of friendship and sympathy by a regime with a long history of meddling in Iran’s affairs and committing crimes against Iranians,” the foreign ministry said in its statement.
It cited grievances ranging from a CIA-orchestrated 1953 coup and US support for Saddam Hussein during the 1980–1988 war to the downing of an Iranian passenger jet in 1988, years of sanctions and joining Israel in attacks on nuclear sites in June.
Tehran also argued that the US, as Israel’s main supporter and a country it described as steeped in racism, has “no credibility to speak on human rights.” It vowed that Iranians “will never forget or forgive” America’s actions.
Silent march held in central Iran’s Arak
A group of people in the central Iranian city of Arak held a silent march on Tuesday evening, a video sent to Iran International shows.