First Trial Session of Suspect in the Murder of Atena Aslani Held

The first trial session of the suspect in the murder of Atena Aslani, a seven-year-old girl from Parsabad, was held privately on Saturday morning, September 4, at the Criminal Court of Ardabil Province. According to the Mizan news agency, affiliated with the Iranian judiciary, Nasser Atabati, the public and revolutionary prosecutor of Ardabil Province, announced that the verdict in this case would be issued 'as quickly as possible and with great accuracy.' After the court session, the judge informed that the verdict for the suspect would be determined next week. Mr. Atabati stated that the court was held privately due to 'certain issues,' but did not elaborate on these reasons or provide further details about the court session. According to Iranian media, Atena Aslani was murdered after being raped on June 18, and her body was found 20 days later in the parking lot of the suspect's shop. Iranian news agencies have identified the suspect as 'Ismail.' However, the suspect denied his previous confessions regarding the murder and 'rape' in an interview with the Tasnim news agency on Wednesday, September 1, claiming that his earlier confessions were made 'under pressure.' Sadeq Amoli Larijani, the head of the Iranian judiciary, had ordered that this case be pursued urgently. Child abuse; 27,000 annual reports In recent weeks, several other reports of child abuse in Iran have been published. According to Hossein Asadbigi, head of Iran's Social Emergency, a 15-month-old child in Sirjan who had been abused was transferred to a childcare center after being discharged from the hospital. According to the report, the child's mother brought him to the hospital with his hand 'cut in several places and visible bruises on his face.' Mr. Asadbigi stated that the child's father is imprisoned and the mother, who is addicted, claimed that these injuries were inflicted 'by her 25-year-old cousin.' Based on this report, both the mother and the child's cousin have been arrested. According to Mr. Asadbigi, this child has a seven-year-old brother who is also 'addicted and undergoing treatment.' The head of the country's Social Emergency had previously reported that some cases of child sexual abuse remain hidden and stated that of approximately 27,000 reports of child abuse to this center last year, about two percent were related to sexual abuse. However, Iraj Harirchi, the Deputy Minister of Health, stated that there are no statistics on sexual abuse of girls in Iran. He also announced that 75 percent of child abuse cases in Iran are committed by family members. Following the reports about the murder of Atena Aslani, some Iranian officials, including Shahindokht Molaverdi, the former Vice President for Women's Affairs, emphasized the necessity of educating families and children to prevent sexual abuse. Previously, the head of the social office of the Tehran governorate reported that for the first time, a 'Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Plan' has been prepared in Tehran Province, and in this plan, teachers and preschool educators in Tehran will receive training. This official from the Tehran governorate also mentioned on June 9 that the aim of this plan is 'to educate a large segment of the student and child community in the province to prevent and protect against sexual abuse.'