Iran hails teen hero who died after saving women in fire

TEHRAN: Iran paid tribute on Saturday to a teenager who died of severe burns after having rescued two women neighbours trapped in a fire in their apartment building.

Fifteen-year-old Ali Landi died of his injuries on Friday, two weeks after he helped the women escape their burning home and tried to throw a gas cylinder out of the window to stop the fire spreading, Iranian media said.

The teenager died of "90 percent burns", said Emam Kazem hospital in Isfahan, central Iran, where he was transferred from his hometown of Izeh in the country’s southwest.

The two neighbours, a woman in her eighties and her daughter, suffered superficial burns in the September 9 blaze, local media said.

Iranians saluted the teenager’s courage online, with many urging the education ministry to incorporate his story in school materials.

On Saturday, a photo of the smiling adolescent was splashed across the front pages of most Iranian newspapers.