Amid nationwide protests that have even mobilized Iranian high school students, the Islamic Republic authorities are removing photos of the Supreme Leader in fear of being torn or damaged.

According to an article in Ham-Mihan daily on Saturday, school principles were ordered to remove Ali Khamenei’s portraits, and the pictures of the founder of the Islamic Republic Ruhollah Khomeini, hanging in classrooms in all the schools in Iran. 

The decision was made after numerous videos surfaced on social media showing students tearing down the photos or replacing them with antigovernment slogans or photos of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old woman whose death in the custody of hijab police sparked the current uprising against the clerical regime. 

According to the report, Basij paramilitary forces have assumed a more active role in the management of schools, and many principals have been summoned or fired due to their lack of harsh reactions to protesting students. 

Outraged by government violence against schoolgirls, people in the northwestern city of Ardabil took to streets on Saturday to protest violence by security forces against their children. 

Based on information received by Iran International, school officials tried to force the students to sing a song, “Hello Commander” in praise of Iran’s ruler Ali Khamenei. Some students refused and then government agents showed up, beating and assaulting the girls. One student reportedly died of her injuries, and another one is hospitalized in critical condition, with reports of several arrests.