Day: March 7, 2023

Iranian media reports say Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has urged officials in the country to investigate the alleged poisonings of school girls with utmost seriousness. Speaking on the sidelines of a ceremony to mark the National Tree Planting Day, Ayatollah Khamenei on March 6 described the poisonings as a heinous and unforgivable crime. "If the cases of poisoning of students are proven, perpetrators should face maximum punishment with no pardon," he said, according to IRNA. Tasnim news agency reports that Ayatollah Khamenei further called the incident 'a crime against the most innocent members of the society, namely children, and a source of psychological insecurity in the society and concern for the affected families.' Earlier, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi issued strict orders for pursuing the issue of poisonings in schools. Raisi said the poisonings are a new plot by Iran's enemies as he described them as an inhumane crime. "This move is another ring in the chain of the enemy's plots aimed at creating tension in the society, disturbing the public opinion and horrifying the offspring of this land and territory, and its roots need to be identified and seriously dealt with," President Raisi noted. Wave of suspected poison attacks on schoolgirls has sparked protests in Iran. Worried parents protested in Iran's capital Tehran and other cities on March 4 over a wave of suspected poison attacks that have affected schoolgirls in dozens of schools, according to Iranian news agencies and social media videos. The unexplained illnesses have reportedly affected hundreds of schoolgirls in recent months. Chain poisoning in girls' schools in Iran is a series of alleged successive chemical attacks during which students of dozens of schools in Iran have been poisoned in a suspicious manner. These events reportedly started on November 30, 2022, in a girls' high school in Qom. Activists say the poisonous attacks have been deliberately carried out by hardline religious groups opposed to girls' education in an attempt to force schools to shut.

Source: Asia-Plus

CABAR.asia says Shoira Zulkaynarova from Tajikistan, the four-time boxing World Cup winner, has been breaking gender stereotypes with her fists, stirring dreams of victory in girls' hearts despite pressure from society. She is Tajikistan's only female boxer who wears a hijab and has been representing the country in worldwide fights. A 28-year-old Tajik woman has reportedly achieved international fame, proving that women can participate in sports that might be considered prohibited for them in traditional society. According to CABAR.asia, Shoira Zulkaynarova is Tajikistan's eight-time boxing champion. In 2022, she reportedly won a bronze medal in the 60kg weight category at the World Boxing Championship in Istanbul, Turkiye. Despite the fact that Shoira is facing many challenges on a daily basis, including constant pressure from society, negative comments on social media, failures or injustices at competitions, she neither loses faith in herself nor gives up on her dream. Shoira says that at first she trained in hand-to-hand combat, but then she realized she was meant to be boxing instead. It was not an easy choice, though. In Tajikistan, the sport is considered taboo for women in terms of religion. So Shoira had to go through the criticism and prejudice of society. Shoira notes with regret that there are insulting comments like "Give up boxing, you're cursed!" under the posts on her Instagram page, but she tries not to pay attention to them. She says she never regretted her choice of profession because she made it knowing all the difficulties she would face. She recounts how last December she competed in a worldwide boxing competition with an arm injury and won in the third-place match. Shoira plans to participate in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and represent Tajikistan there. Despite the negative attitude of society, she is not giving up and continues her path in boxing on the world stage.

Source: Asia-Plus