Mahsa Amini’s death sparked protests in Iran and across the globe
(Picture: AP)Mahsa Amini, the Iranian woman detained by morality police for wearing a hijab too loosely, was tortured by officers before she died in their custody, her cousin has said.
Erfan Mortezaei told Sky News the 22-year-old was shopping in Tehran with relatives when they were confronted by police who “decided her hijab was not correct”.
“In the struggle the police officers pepper-sprayed [her brother] in the face and forced Mahsa into the van and take her to the morality police station,” Mr Mortezaei told the broadcaster in an interview.
Mr Mortezaei said a witness who was in the van told her family she was “tortured and insulted” and she began to lose her vision and fainted at the police station.
He said it took 30 minutes for ambulance workers to reach her and an hour and a half before she got to hospital.
“There is a report from Kasra hospital [in Tehran] that says effectively by the time she reached the hospital she was already dead from a medical point of view,” he told Sky News.
“She suffered a concussion from a blow to the head.”
His interview comes as hundreds of protesters clashed with police across London over her death, resulting in 12 arrests and at least five officers being injured.
He said that Ms Amini had no involvement in politics, despite some local media claims, but her death had sparked a protest movement across Iran and Kurdistan.
Protests by members of the Iranian community have also taken place across the globe over the weekend in solidarity, including in Syria and Canada.
Mr Mortezaei claimed: “Mahsa is the voice of the anger of the Iranian people right now.”
He said her family are calling on the international community to make sure the regime is held responsible for his cousin’s death.
Dozens of Iraqi and Iranian Kurds rallied in Iraq's northern city of Erbil on Saturday.
Protestors carrying placards with Ms Amini's photograph gathered outside the United Nations compound chanting "Death to the dictator" - a reference to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Ms Amini's death has reignited anger over issues including restrictions on personal freedoms in Iran, the strict dress codes for women and an economy reeling from sanctions.
