Iran makes catty remark about Britney Spears’ mental health after troubled singer said she and her Iranian husband supported protesters there calling for women’s rights
- Iran’s Islamic Republic News Agency remarked on Britney Spears’ mental health after she tweeted in support of the protests in the country
- Spears is married to Iranian-American model Sam Asghari, and tweeted ‘Me & my husband stand with the people of Iran fighting for freedom’
- The state-sponsored network pointed out ‘Britney Spears was placed under her father’s conservatorship in 2008 due to her mental health problems’
- The twitter beef comes as Iran deals with mass protests following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who is suspected of being killed by police
- Police and the IRNA claim Amini had a heart attack after she was detained, but her family and others maintain she was beaten to death
- Other celebrities such as Meghan Markle have voiced their support for the protests – Markle wore a shirt that read ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ in Farsi
An Iranian government mouthpiece has called Britney Spears’ mental health into question after the troubled star voiced her support for women’s rights protests there.
The Islamic Republic News Agency tweeted: ‘American singer Britney Spears was placed under her father’s conservatorship in 2008 due to her mental health problems’ on their official twitter account.’
‘That gave Britney’s father control over her finances and even her personal life aspects such as pregnancy, remarriage and visits to her teenage sons,’ the tweet concluded.
They also attached a picture of a separate reply to Spears’ tweet from another user who wrote ‘Nice talk. Can you manage your own money yet?’
They did so in response to a tweet from Spears, 40, whose 28 year-old husband Sam Asghari Iranian American. It said: ‘Me & my husband stand with the people of Iran fighting for freedom.’
Iran appeared to be attempting to question whether Spears was in a fit state to question turmoil engulfing the country, which is run by a cabal of hardline Islamic clerics.
Britney Spears and her husband Sam Asghari, who is Iranian-American, have voiced their support for the protests in Iran to the chagrin of the country’s state-sponsored news network
Mahsa Amini, 22, died in police custody after being detained in Tehran by Iranian morality police who believed she was wearing her hijab too loosely, causing mass protests
In September, Asghari posted a video to his Instagram sharing why he supported the protests in Iran.
‘After 1979, the Islamic Republic regime took over and forced its ideology, propaganda and dictatorship on the people,’ Asghari, 28, said. ‘It slaughtered, murdered and stole from innocent people.’
Women across Iran have been protesting gendered oppression following the death of Mahsa Amini.
The 22-year-old died in police custody after being arrested for allegedly violating the Muslim nation’s strict morality laws which requires women to cover their hair.
The IRNA have routinely attempted to shift blame from the police and claim Amini died from a heart attack, but her family allege she was beaten to death.
Other celebrities, including Meghan Markle, have thrown their support behind the women protesting in Iran.
Markle made a surprise appearance at Spotify’s headquarters on Tuesday and spoke in support of the protests in Iran while wearing a shirt emblazoned with a message written in Farsi.
The Duchess of Sussex wore a shirt with Farsi words meaning ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ written across the front.
Meghan Markle (center) with Archewell executive vice president of global communications Ashley Hansen (left), and president Mandana Dayani (right), both of whom are Iranian
An Iranian woman protests Mahsa Amini’s death after she was detained by the morality police, in Tehran, Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022
Markle brought along two executive members of her organization Archewell – executive vice president of global communications Ashley Hansen, and president Mandana Dayani, both of whom are Iranian women.
‘As an Iranian woman who fled her home country in pursuit of these very freedoms, I could not have been more grateful for how she chooses, again and again, to advocate for women around the world,’ Dayani said.
The support from American celebrities comes as rock climber Elnaz Rekabi arrived back in Tehran to cheering crowds after she refused to compete at a competition with her hijab on.
While many believe Rekabi’s actions were a show of solidarity, she has attempted to downplay the symbolism amid fears she could be imprisoned for her actions.
Rekabi on Wednesday repeated an explanation posted earlier to an Instagram account in her name that described her not wearing a hijab as ‘unintentional.’
Rekabi (pictured competing in Seoul without her hijab) said she forgot to put her hijab on when preparing for a stage of the competition
The protests represent the most serious challenge to Iran’s theocracy since the mass protests surrounding its disputed 2009 presidential election
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks in a meeting with a group of students in Tehran on Wednesday
The Iranian government routinely pressures activists at home and abroad, often airing what human rights groups describe as coerced confessions on state television – the same cameras she addressed on her arrival back home.
‘Our understanding is that she is returning to Iran, and we will continue to monitor the situation as it develops on her arrival,’ the International Federation of Sport Climbing, which oversaw the event, said in a statement.
‘It is important to stress that athletes’ safety is paramount for us and we support any efforts to keep a valued member of our community safe in this situation.’
The protests, drawing school-age children, oil workers, and others to the street in over 100 cities, represent the most serious challenge to Iran’s theocracy since the mass protests surrounding its disputed 2009 presidential election.
Meanwhile, authorities have detained at least 40 journalists, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have repeatedly alleged the country’s foreign enemies are behind the ongoing demonstrations, rather than Iranians angered by Amini’s death and the country’s other woes.
Iranians have seen their life savings evaporate; the country’s currency, the rial, plummeted and Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers has been reduced to tatters.
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