Simin Behbahani, Iranian Poet Quoted by Obama, Dies at Age 87

Iranian poet Simin Behbahani, whose politically defiant writing was mentioned by U.S. President Barack Obama in a message aimed at improving relations with the Islamic Republic, has died at the age of 87 in Tehran.

Behbahani died from heart failure at around 1:15 a.m. local time today at a hospital in the Iranian capital, her son, Ali Behbahani, said in a phone interview. She had been in a coma for two weeks and had previously shown signs of Alzheimer’s disease and respiratory problems, he said.