Iranian police dubbed Mahsa Amini’s death a “unfortunate episode” that they do not wish to see repeated, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.

Amini, a 22-year-old woman, died after falling into a coma after being arrested by morality police in Tehran last week, igniting protests around the country by Iranians outraged by the treatment of women by the country’s security services.

“Cowardly accusations have been levelled against the Iranian police. We will wait until the day of judgment but we cannot stop doing security work,” Greater Tehran Police Commander Hossein Rahimi added.