The Iranian Ministry of Interior announced the arrest of more than 100 people in 11 provinces, including Tehran and Qom, on the background of cases of poisoning in girls' schools in the country for about 3 months.
The ministry said, in a statement, that a number of detainees used materials that were not dangerous but smelly with the aim of disrupting schools, and that a number of them had hostile motives and sought to spread fear among female students and in society, with the aim of creating a pessimistic view of the regime in Iran.
The Iranian Ministry of Interior added that investigations are continuing to reveal any possible link to the People's Mujahedin Organization, noting that poisoning cases have decreased significantly since the middle of last week.
She called on parents of female and male students to send their children to schools to prevent a decline in the educational level.
In recent months, several schools in the capital, Tehran, have reported cases of mysterious poisoning and hundreds of schoolgirls have been sent to hospitals.
According to local media, dozens of cases of poisoning among female students have been recorded at a school in Pardis, a suburb located 17 km northeast of Tehran, and similar reports have been received from the west of the capital.
Hundreds of schoolgirls have been hospitalized in cities across the country since last November, in what has been described as a "wave of mysterious poisoning".
Although the exact number of female students affected by poisoning is not known until today, a senior representative estimated, last Wednesday, the number initially at about 900.
And last Thursday, the Public Prosecutor in Tehran, Ali Salehi, announced the formation of a special committee to follow up on the case, warning that the "culprits" would face severe legal penalties.