A nine-year-old student died suddenly during a school break in the western Iranian city of Ilam on Saturday, local media reported, amid a spate of student deaths and allegations of mistreatment in schools across the country.
The student, identified as Parnia Rezaei, collapsed during recess at Naderi Elementary School, according to the news outlet Didban Iran. The cause of death has not yet been determined.
Abbas Omidi, the head of Ilam’s education department, said the death occurred suddenly and that school staff immediately called emergency services.
“The student was transferred to hospital for urgent medical care, but resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful,” Omidi told reporters.
Authorities in Ilam said an investigation into Rezaei’s death is underway.
Rezaei’s death follows several recent incidents involving students’ deaths and alleged abuse in schools since the start of the new academic year in late September.
Earlier in October, 12-year-old Sam Zarei in Shiraz took his own life after psychological pressure from school officials, according to reports on Iranian media.
Also in October, Zahra Golmakani, a 10-year-old student in Mashhad, died of what authorities described as cardiac arrest during class.
Similar reports have emerged from the provinces of Mazandaran, Qazvin, and Zanjan, where students have died or been injured following disciplinary actions.
Despite an education ministry directive explicitly banning corporal punishment and verbal abuse, rights advocates and teachers’ unions say such incidents remain frequent, reflecting systemic failures in oversight and student protection.
Iran’s top social affairs official on Sunday warned of a rise in suicide among children under 12, calling it a troubling shift that was once “very rare.”
Mohammad Bathaei, head of the National Organization for Social Affairs, told ILNA that schools and universities lack effective curricula to build resilience and coping skills, saying “education systems have not started preventive work in a meaningful way.”
Bathaei said emergency responses also remain inadequate despite efforts by the Social Emergency network and Health Ministry.
