Iranian Media Reports the Murder of a 10-Year-Old Disabled Child by Her Mother

Iranian media reported that a woman in Khorramabad, Lorestan province, has murdered her 10-year-old child who had physical and mental disabilities. According to 'Didban Iran' on Wednesday, March 1, the mother ended her child's life by administering sleeping pills and submerging her child's head in a bucket of water. This 'filicide' occurred earlier this week, and the accused cited 'depression' caused by 'increased harassment' from her child as the reason for the murder. Reports did not mention the identities of the woman and her disabled child. The murder of disabled children by family members or their deaths in care facilities for the disabled is not unprecedented in Iran. According to the Campaign for the Disabled, 9-year-old autistic child Shahrad Cheraghi was murdered by his father on January 26 of this year. The report states that the accused was released on bail a few days after being arrested. The inclusion of the father's name in Shahrad Cheraghi's obituary drew criticism from several users and journalists. Journalist Sara Masoumi wrote on social media platform 'X': 'A father took the life of his child due to disability, and the same father's name appears in the obituary! This child also has a grieving mother whose name is not as important as the name of the killer.' A user named Mohammad also wrote: 'The killer's name is on the writing sheet, but not the mother.' On the other hand, the 'ruthless mockery' of disabled individuals in the Iranian television program 'Bego Bekhand' faced outrage and criticism from several social media users and some media outlets, leading to an apology from one of the judges of the show. The newspaper Etemad, referring to 'inflation, high prices, and lack of government funding' for the disabled and their repeated and fruitless protests, wrote: 'Where should they place the mockery in the national media?' A part of the disabled community has repeatedly protested against the non-implementation of the 'Support for the Disabled' law or the incomplete execution of its provisions in various cities across the country. Reactions to the mockery of the disabled on the Islamic Republic television; users: it is a degradation in the display of disability. An activist stated: 'The arrears of the disability allowance have still not been paid.' Officials' resistance in response to the minimal demands of the disabled; the government's refusal to increase the living allowance. Government agents attacked the protest gathering of disabled individuals in Tehran.