Reports of 'Deteriorating Condition' of Arzoo Badri; Fars Claims Three Bullets Were Fired at Her Vehicle

More than three weeks after police officers shot Arzoo Badri in Mazandaran province, official sources continue to withhold details about the shooting, with the Fars news agency, close to the Revolutionary Guards, reporting that 'three bullets' were fired at her vehicle. Arzoo Badri was one of the two occupants of a car that, according to reports, was on the list of confiscated vehicles related to mandatory hijab laws and was shot at by officers in Noor county about three weeks ago. Fars reported on Thursday, August 25, that after the driver of the Pride car ignored a stop order, 'during a chase, police fired three bullets at the tires of this vehicle.' This claim contradicts earlier reports from some sources, including BBC Persian, which stated that officers shot at the occupants of the car at least once 'from the driver's side.' The news agency also denied reports that the vehicle was pursued due to the occupants' failure to comply with mandatory hijab laws. The police confirmed that Arzoo Badri's injuries were a result of the police shooting. The time of the shooting was previously mentioned as 11 PM on 'August 1,' but the Revolutionary Guards-affiliated news agency reported it as the evening of 'August 2.' Official authorities have so far refrained from providing details about this incident, and brief statements from the Mazandaran police have not mentioned Arzoo Badri's name or explained the incident, instead linking it to a 'theft prevention plan.' Arzoo Badri, 31 years old and a mother of two, was initially transferred to medical centers in Noor and Sari after being shot in the back and is currently hospitalized under security conditions at 'Valiasr Hospital' in Tehran. Meanwhile, some sources, including the Hengaw website, have reported on Ms. Badri's poor physical condition. According to Hengaw, Arzoo Badri underwent surgery for the second time on Wednesday, August 24, but her 'health condition has worsened.' The report states that the reason for her second surgery was 'fluid in the lungs.' It was previously reported that doctors finally managed to remove the bullet from Ms. Badri's back after about ten days, but her lung and spinal cord have suffered 'serious damage.' Additionally, Hengaw and some other sources have reported that Arzoo Badri's family is under pressure from security agencies to repeat the government narrative in front of cameras. Since the 'Women, Life, Freedom' protests that erupted following the death of Mahsa Amini in the morality police and continued for months, protests and criticisms of the police's violent treatment of Iranian women have increased. However, the police have not changed their approach, and numerous reports from citizens indicate that incidents of injury due to police violence and even deaths of citizens due to beatings or shootings by the police have continued to occur over the past two years. Meanwhile, Amnesty International has issued a statement calling for effective investigations into the police shooting of Arzoo Badri and has questioned the authenticity of the police's claims regarding the reason for the incident. This human rights organization emphasized that this incident highlights the urgent need to abolish mandatory hijab laws and address the impunity crisis for perpetrators of such incidents.