STRASBOURG, France, Dec 11, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - European Parliament members on Monday urged Iran to allow the family of Mahsa Amini, whose death in custody sparked global protests, to travel to France to collect the EU's top rights prize.

Lawmakers said authorities in Tehran confiscated the passports of Amini's mother, father and brother and stopped them boarding a flight to Paris. 
"This restriction is aimed at silencing Jina Mahsa Amini's family, 
preventing them from speaking out about the Islamic Republic's outrageous repression of women's rights, human rights and fundamental freedoms in Iran," 116 MEPs wrote in a letter. 

"We cannot tolerate this, the truth must not be silenced and the face of this incredible liberation movement should be shown to Europe and the world."

The MEPs called on Iran "to retract this decision and to allow Jina Mahsa Amini's mother, father and brother to travel to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Tuesday to receive the 2023 Sakharov Prize". 

Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, died on September 16, 2022 while being held by Iran's religious police for allegedly breaching the Islamic republic's strict dress code for women. 

Her death triggered mass protests in Iran and a global movement known as "Woman, Life, Freedom", calling for the end of the Muslim cleric-led government in Tehran and its imposition of headscarves on women.

In October, the European Union awarded its top rights honour, the Sakharov Prize, to Amini and the worldwide demonstrations her death sparked. 

Iranian security forces have cracked down on the protests domestically, killing hundreds, and have executed dozens for allegedly participating in what officials have called "riots".