Iranian woman arrested for trying to enter soccer stadium dies from burns
She was reportedly suffered from burns covering 90% of her body and was on life support until her death.
By ZACHARY KEYSERSoccer Football - World Cup - Group B - Morocco vs Iran - Saint Petersburg Stadium, Saint Petersburg, Russia - June 15, 2018 General view of a banner displayed referencing Iranian women during the match(photo credit: REUTERS/DYLAN MARTINEZ)
Israel, (September 27) - The 29-year-old Iranian woman who set herself on fire in front of a Tehran court on September 1 in protest of a six-month prison sentence she was possibly facing for trying to enter a men's soccer game back in March has died in the hospital, Radio Farda reported.Also known as Iran's "Blue Girl" for the color of her favorite soccer team, she reportedly suffered from burns covering 90% of her body and was on life support until her death."The woman attempted to disguise herself as a man in order to enter the stadium. She was stopped by security forces and then quickly escorted to Qarchak prison, known to be one of the country's more menacing prisons due to "inhumane medical and psychological conditions", according to Radio Farda.Months after her release from her three-day stint in Qarchak, the woman, Sahar Khodayari, went to the prosecutor's office to collect her confiscated cellphone, where she learned that she could be given a six-month prison sentence for the infraction, according to reports.Khodayari, who allegedly was suffering from and was under treatment for bipolar disorder, protested the sentence by pouring gasoline over her body and setting herself on fire directly outside the court.Some Iranians have requested FIFA hold the Iranian football federation accountable as a result of the court case. Her sister released the news of her mental status on the state-run news agencies IRNA.Iranian soccer players Masoud Shojaei and Vorya Ghaffouri, as well as many politicians, have spoken out in condemnation of the Islamic Republic following her arrest."As we are shocked by the limitations that were set for women in the past, the future generation will also definitely be astonished by [finding out] that women were banned from entering sports arenas in our time," said Shojaei, the captain of the Iranian men's football team on a live Instagram post. "The origin of such limitations is the rotten and disgusting thinking of the past, and will be incomprehensible for the next generation."This incident comes almost three weeks after Iran, under international pressure, released a group of women who were arrested for watching a men's soccer match. The women disguised themselves as men, just as Khodayari did, but failed to fool Iranian officials. Their situation had a more positive ending, since they were released from jail."Without a doubt, the self-immolation of a girl today after the extension of her custody on the charge of trying to enter a stadium to watch football is rooted in outdated and cringe-worthy thoughts that will not be understood by future generations," said Shojaei.
According to Radio Farda, within hours after Shojaei and Ghaffouri posted their condemnations, many other "well-known" players joined in to voice their support of lifting the restriction on women from entering men's sporting events.Iran has consistently faced international scrutiny regarding its modesty laws. According to the Telegraph, Iran says that women watching men's soccer promotes promiscuity.Soccer's world governing body FIFA commands a code of ethics against discrimination and has given the country an ultimatum that it must fulfill by October: Allow women to enter sports arenas or the Iranian team will be removed from international soccer events, Radio Farda reported.Iran is presently the only country in the world that prohibits women from entering sporting events.The rule stems from an "unwritten law" that has been "supported by religious conservatives and political hardliners" since the change in power during the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
