Statement by Coach of the Girls’ Sport center in LAMERD Fars Province of IRAN before 62nd session of the HRC
Agenda item 3- PANEL ON WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SPORTS
***************
Statement
by
Ms. Rahimeh Shahabi
Coach of the Girls’ Sport center in LAMERD – Fars Province of IRAN
before
62nd session of the HRC
Agenda item 3- PANEL ON WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SPORTS
Geneva, 23 June 2026
*****
بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم
Mr. President,
I am Rahima Sshahabi a volleyball coach in Iran in the small town of LAMERD.
On February 28th 2026 I was training 10 to 11-year-old girls when suddenly we heard an explosion and thousands of shrapnel pieces rain down on our Sports hall.
HELMA, my dear students who was her family's only child screamed in her final moments: “coach my heart!”
ELHAM, my 11 years old student said with tears: “Coach, Help”.
Bur both were martyred.
The football children on the grass field next to us, also martyred with their coach.
These American war crimes, had thousands of martyrs and wounded those who not a single one of them was military.
One of the girls lost their eyesight, another lost her ability to speak. Another one of my girls even after 4 months still has her intestines exposed.
Come to LAMERD to see, these are living Witnesses of war crimes.
The New York Times revealed that the US Army tested these missiles on the people of LAMERD for the first time in the world. And this prohibited weapon of mass destruction contain 180,000 pieces of shrapnel.
Today, you are speaking about empowering women in sports. That is exactly what I have been doing in LAMERD for 20 years. But instead of medals, America put shrapnel on our girls’ chest and left the game unfinished.
Thank you.
---