EU calls for UN to probe Iran schoolgirl poisonings

The European lawmakers called on the UN Human Rights Council yesterday to conduct an independent investigation into a wave of poisonings that have hit schoolgirls in Iran.

In a resolution, the European Parliament urged the EU member states to facilitate the issuance of visas, asylum and emergency grants to those who need to leave Iran, particularly women and girls.

According to state media and officials in Iran, around 13,000 pupils, mostly girls, have fallen ill after suspected poisonings. Some activists have blamed religious groups opposed to girls’ education for these poisonings.