1,200 Iranian students poisoned ahead of mass protests

A group of 1,200 university students in Iran were struck down by food poisoning the night before a wave of anti-regime protests were set to be held throughout the country.

Students at Kharazmi and Ark universities experienced vomiting, severe body aches and hallucinations, the national student union claimed Thursday.

At least four other universities reported similar outbreaks. Uninfected students are reportedly boycotting the cafeterias in response.

While officials are citing water-borne bacteria as the cause of the troubling symptoms, the student union posited that the population was intentionally poisoned.