Acid Attack by Two Motorcyclists on a Pickup Driver in Tehran

While Tehran police reported an acid attack on a 26-year-old man on Thursday and his outpatient treatment at a hospital, officials from Tehran's emergency services and the Burn and Trauma Hospital claim that no such incident occurred that day. According to the Iranian police information center, at 6:15 PM on Thursday, December 25, in the Haft Chenar area of Tehran, two masked individuals on a motorcycle splashed acid on a pickup driver and fled the scene. The driver, a 26-year-old man, suffered injuries to his face and neck and was treated and discharged from the Burn and Trauma Hospital. However, contrary to the Tehran police's statement, Hassan Abbasi, the public relations manager of the emergency services, told Fars News Agency that there were 'no' cases of acid attacks or transfers to the Motahari Burn and Trauma Hospital that day. He mentioned that only one acid attack was reported in the Maniriyeh Square, but upon the arrival of emergency technicians, it was determined that this was not true and there were no victims. According to Fars News Agency, the public relations office of the Motahari Burn and Trauma Hospital also stated that there was no report of anyone coming in with acid burns. Last week, conflicting reports about an acid attack in Tehran were published. Ismail Ahmadi Moghadam, the commander of the Islamic Republic's police, announced on December 15 that an acid attack on a young girl in Tehran had occurred, attributing it to personal disputes. However, on December 18, Arya Hajizadeh, the deputy for combating serious crimes in Tehran's police, stated that the woman's claim of an acid attack was false, and she had decided to draw police attention to the issue due to the sensitivity surrounding acid attacks. He noted that the arrested individual had previously set fire to the woman's car but had never splashed acid on her. In December, two other acid attacks were reported in Tehran. Siamand Anvari, the director of the Ziaian Hospital in Tehran, was attacked with acid by two motorcyclists on December 8 while returning home and was hospitalized at Farabi Hospital. The day after this incident, Hossein Sajedi Nia, the commander of Greater Tehran's police, announced the arrest of 'a doctor and a student' as the 'two perpetrators' of this incident. On December 3, police commanders in Tehran reported the arrest of a 24-year-old man and 'two accomplices' who, according to them, had planned an acid attack on a girl they liked to 'attract her attention' and executed it with the help of two accomplices. The publication of reports about acid attacks in Tehran comes while more than two months have passed since the serial acid attacks in Isfahan, and the perpetrator or perpetrators of this act have not yet been arrested. However, Mahdieh Golroo, a member of the Women’s Citizenship Association and a participant in a protest against this incident, remains in custody. On Tuesday, December 22, hundreds of civil activists in Iran and abroad sent a letter to Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, requesting that he utilize all legal means and capacities to secure Mahdieh Golroo's release.