More than 100 people have been arrested in Iran in connection with a mysterious mass poisoning of schoolgirls that shocked the country, Iranian authorities said.

“More than 100 people suspected of involvement in incidents at schools have been identified, arrested and interrogated,” the Iranian Interior Ministry said in a statement, quoted by the official Irna news agency.

The ministry did not provide further information about the suspects, who were arrested in several provinces, including Tehran and Qom, northern Iran, eastern and western Azerbaijan, northwestern Iran, or even Kurdistan and Hamadan in the western part of the country.

However, the department clarified that “among those arrested” some had “hostile motives” aimed at “sowing fear among students and closing schools.” The ministry also spoke of “possible links to terrorist organizations,” referring to the People’s Mujahideen, an exiled group of Iranian dissidents.

In a statement, the ministry expressed its satisfaction that “fortunately, since the middle of last week, the number of cases has decreased significantly” and “there have been no new cases of students.”

Since the case broke out at the end of November, many schools, mostly for girls, have experienced sudden fumes poisoning that caused nausea and fainting, and sometimes even hospitalization of students.

Authorities say they have registered a total of “more than 5,000 student cases” in “about 230 schools” in 25 of the country’s 31 provinces.

Following the spread of cases, parents of students and local residents mobilized to express their concerns and ask the authorities to take action.

On March 6, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addressed the world calling for “severe punishments”, up to and including the death penalty, for those found guilty of these poisonings, which he called “unforgivable crimes.”

Source: AFP, APE-MPE.