She died in police custody, sparking nationwide protests. “While the sexist laws and the unjust treatment of women in the country were at the core of the protests, the declining living conditions and corruption in government further fueled the anti-government messaging,” the report found. “As summarized by Human Rights Watch, ‘In a country with mass repression, unfree elections and apparent corruption and mismanagement, Iran’s autocracy rules with all that remains: brute force.’”