Independent Online, May 1, 2000

Couple kill child for poor school marks

Tehran - An Iranian couple murdered their eight-year-old daughter because of her poor grades in school, the official Irna news agency reported on Monday.

It said the couple made their daughter drink a glass of weed-killer two months ago to keep her from "becoming a burden to society" after she came home with a bad report card from school.

They then buried her in the yard of an abandoned house in the Caspian Sea province of Gilan, Irna said, citing police officials.

Police said the couple are drug addicts and have been arrested.

In February, a father beat his 10-year-old daughter to death in Tabriz, western Iran, because she had received a mark at school of 80 percent, the Kayhan newspaper reported.

It quoted the girl's school as saying that she was a good and well-behaved pupil. - Sapa-AFP


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