Open Stadiums have called on Gianni Infantino to expel Iran
Rights group Open Stadiums have called on FIFA president Gianni Infantino to expel Iran from the World Cup because of the way women are treated in the country.
Open Stadiums sent an open letter to Infantino in which they claimed that stadiums in Iran are still preventing women from attending matches, despite pressure from FIFA.
The organisation also highlighted a number of incidents where the Iranian authorities had used violence against women, as well as claiming that a several female journalists and photographers had been arrested and detained for trying to report on sport in Iran.
A statement posted to Twitter said: "That is why, as Iranian football fans, it is with an extremely heavy heart that we have to raise our deepest concern about Iran's participation in the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
"Why would FIFA give the Iranian state and its representatives a global stage, while it not only refuses to respect basic human rights and dignities but is currently torturing and killing its own people?
"Therefore, we ask FIFA, based on Articles 3 and 4 of its statutes, to immediately expel Iran from the World Cup 2022 in Qatar.
"This is not only a demand from our groups and campaigns in Iran. We will plead with all fans across the world to highlight, discuss, and back this call for Iran's expulsion from the World Cup, especially because we do not believe this team represents us or our values as Iranian citizens any longer."
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Iran are in the same World Cup group as England, Wales and the USA.
Calls for Iran to be expelled have come as protests continue to happen across the country following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died while in police custody earlier this month.
Amini had been arrested after visiting the country's capital, Tehran, on September 13 before being arrested by Iran's morality police officers for allegedly violating the strict law requiring women to cover their hair with a hijab.
Authorities have claimed that Amini died after suffering sudden heart failure, but her family have alleged that she was beaten by officers.
The news of her death has sparked mass anti-government protests, with
Reuters reporting that at least 83 people have been killed in the demonstrations.
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