Woman at Houston Mahsa Amini protest: 'Iranians all over the world are outraged'

A group of Houstonians held a protest on Wednesday at the intersection of Post Oak Boulevard and Westheimer in Uptown Houston, calling for attention to the death of a woman in Iranian police custody, according to a report from Houston NBC affiliate KPRC.

Twenty-two-year-old Mahsa Amini perished in Tehran on Friday following her arrest by the southwest Asian nation’s Guidance Patrol. Amini was accused of violating Iran’s law that requires women to wear hijabs, or a head covering meant to preserve modesty. Speculation has risen that Amini may had been subjected to police brutality.

The Houston protest is just among the many that have taken place in Iran and around the world.

“Iranians all over the world are outraged,” an unidentified female protester told KPRC. “The violence that has happened in this case is too much, and it shouldn’t have happened. People should be held accountable.”

Citing London-based broadcaster Iran International, National Public Radio (NPR) reported that Amini was purportedly hit in the head repeatedly before falling into a coma and dying two days after her arrest.

NPR reported that Iranian authorities denied claims that Amini, who hailed from the city of Saqqez in Kurdistan province, was beaten.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi personally contacted the woman’s family and assured them a full investigation will be conducted, per NPR.

KPRC reported that the those gathered at the Houston protest said they did so on behalf of their loved ones in Iran who aren’t able to call out their government.

“We are trying to stand here today and be the voice,” one of the protestors told the station.

According to MSN, the protests in Iran involved women setting their hijabs on fire or cutting their hair in response to Amini’s death.