Iranian footballers did not sing their national anthem before the match with England

Iranian national team players refused to sing their national anthem before the first round match of the World Cup against England. Protests have been going on in Iran for a month and a half demanding regime change. The fans greeted the action with applause.

Football players of the England team, in turn, sang the British anthem, but some players instead of God Save the King (“God Save the King.”— “b”) sang the usual God Save the Queen (“God save the Queen.” – “b”). Queen Elizabeth II died on September 8 at the age of 96. Her son Charles became the heir to the throne, who received the status of heir to the throne in 1952 and took the name Charles III.

As the newspaper reported The GuardianOn November 17, at a press conference before the match, the captain of the Iranian national team, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, said that the decision to perform the anthem would be made “within the team.” He added that the players have already discussed this issue.

Protests in Iran began in mid-September after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained by morality police in Tehran for wearing the hijab incorrectly. In the station, the girl became ill, she was sent to the hospital, where she died. According to the protesters, the girl died from beatings.

More than 300 people, including 41 children and 24 women, have been killed in seven weeks of unrest in Iran, according to IHR. At the same time, Iranian state media reported last month about nearly 50 members of the security forces who died during the protests.

Read more about the protests in Iran – in the material “Kommersant” “Iran punished in two”.

Erdni Kagaltynov