Armita Gerawand being carried off a train in the Teheran metro. Tehran Metro
Armita Gerawand being carried off a train in the Teheran metro. Tehran Metro
Armita Gerawand being carried off a train in the Teheran metro. Tehran Metro
Armita Gerawand being carried off a train in the Teheran metro. Tehran Metro

Iranian schoolgirl reportedly in coma after morality police assault


Holly Johnston
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An Iranian schoolgirl is reported to be in a coma after being assaulted by morality police officers on the Tehran metro.

Armita Geravand's arrest was first published by IranWire on Monday, with sources telling the outlet she suffered from "visible head injuries" and need to be resuscitated after arriving at Fajr Air Force Hospital in a comatose state.

The Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights later said the 16-year-old had been in a coma since Sunday due to a "severe physical assault".

The arrest bears many similarities to the case of Mahsa Amini, whose death in police custody last September sparked the biggest anti-regime protests in its history.

Ms Gerawand's family, from the Kurdish city of Kermanshah, have been prevented from visiting her at hospital, Hengaw said.

A journalist who visited the site to report on the incident was detained by authorities.

Footage circulating on social media shows the young woman, who appears to be unconscious, being carried out of the metro carriage.

State news outlet Irna has reported she suffered a drop in blood pressure and published videos of her parents supporting official reports.

Rights groups have said her family have been pressured into denying she was beaten by morality police officers.

Hijab laws

Families of detained and killed protesters and regime critics are often subject to surveillance, threats and arrest for criticising Tehran.

Dozens of grieving relatives were arrested ahead of the first anniversary of the protests last month, including Mashallah Karimi, whose son was executed in January.

Iran has tightened hijab laws since the protests, which require women to cover their hair and wear loose-fitting clothes in public.

Women have been barred from their work and universities for not wearing the hijab, while Tehran's extensive metro system had also threatened a similar ban.

Passengers have reported being turned away from ticket gates for not wearing the hijab, while increased morality police patrols have been noted on the streets.

Last month, parliament passed a "hijab and chastity" bill that rights groups have condemned as gender apartheid.

Under the legislation, which is yet to be approved by Iran's Guardian Council, women face a 10-year prison sentence for not wearing the hijab.

The new legislation also states children can also be prosecuted, and toys must also conform to the law.

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Updated: November 02, 2023, 1:32 PM