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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
William Mata

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe cuts hair in solidarity with Iran protests after Mahsa Amini death

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has filmed herself cutting her hair in solidarity with protesters in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini.

Protests are continuing after 22-year-old Ms Amini died in police custody after allegedly breaching rules that require women to cover their hair with a hijab.

British-Irani Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who spent six years in prison in Iran, sent the footage to BBC Persian to show her solidarity with protesters.

The West Hampstead-based mother-of-one, speaking in Persian, named women who have faced punishment under Iranian law before taking cuts of her hair.

“For my mother, for my daughter, for the fear of solitary confinement, for the women of my country, for freedom,” she said at the end of the video.

Women across Iran have been shaving their heads, in protest at Ms Amini’s death, in demonstrations which have now spread to 80 cities.

It is thought at least 76 people have died in the unrest.

Authorities have responded by shutting down internet communication and physically confronting crowds on streets.

The Iran state said Ms Amini died of sudden heart failure but her family said she was beaten while in custody, where she was taken on September 13 before dying in hospital.

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