Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe joins Iran protests over Mahsa Amini death by cutting her hair
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has cut her hair in support of Mahsa Amini, the Iranian woman who was arrested for not covering her hair properly, and died three days later.
The British-Iranian citizen, who spent six years in jail in Iran, recorded a video of herself taking a pair of scissors to her hair and declaring her support for the women of Iran.
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested in 2016 on spying charges she has repeatedly denied and was freed in March this year.
In the video she can be seen following the example of women in the country and chopping off several inches of hair.
Speaking in Farsi, she lists the names of people, including Ms Amini, who have died in the protests.
At the end of the clip, released by the BBC, she says: "For my mother, for my daughter, for the fear of solitary confinement, for the women of my country, for freedom."
Mahsa Amini died in police custody after she was arrested and accused of breaking laws that require women to cover their hair with a hijab.
Police say that she went into cardiac arrest at a detention centre and died in hospital, but her family say that she died as a result of police brutality.
Experts linked to the United Nations have said that reports indicate she was severely beaten while in custody, however no evidence has been offered.
After her death women in Iran and around the world have been publicly burning hijabs and cutting their hair as a sign of protest.
Read more:
Who was Mahsa Amini, why are women cutting their hair?
Iran summons British ambassador to protest over media coverage of Mahsa Amini unrest
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The demonstrations are the biggest in Iran since 2019. State media says that 41 people have died, but Iran Human Rights, a charity based in Oslo, has put the figure at 76, and says that hundreds more have been arrested.
According to Human Rights Watch, courts in Iran have imposed or upheld at least four death sentences in connection with the protests.
