Setayesh Ghoreishi: Family of six-year-old murdered in Iran demand her teenage killer is executed

The father of a six-year-old Afghan girl raped and murdered in Iran has demanded the death penalty for her attacker, allegedly the family's 17-year-old neighbour.

Setayesh Ghoreishi was reported as missing on 9 April, and her body discovered the following day after she was assaulted and stabbed to death by an attacker who tried to dispose of her body by putting her in a bathtub and covering her in acid.

Her devastated family claimed Iranian state media failed to give the case much coverage, due to their status as Afghan migrants, and asked that the perpetrator be treated the same as he would if the case was reversed and a migrant had killed a young Iranian girl.

The case sparked a hug reaction on social media, where the hashtag #IamSetayesh was shared to raise awareness of the under-reported case. During a gathering in Tehran to commemorate the little girl, police reportedly moved mourners along claiming they did not have a permit to hold the memorial.

The 17-year-old neighbour of the family has reportedly confessed to the crime and has been arrested, with the girl's family requesting he face the death penalty, which is used in Iran for a number of crimes including murder and drug offences.

A report by Amnesty International released at the beginning of April stated the Iran had the second highest rate of executions worldwide, with more than 73 juvenile offenders believed to be executed in the decade between 2005 and 2015.

Police have said the arrested man will face 'decisive action'.