Iran threatens ‘without mercy’ persecution of women without headscarves
Iran threatens women who show themselves in public without a headscarf with merciless persecution. “The removal of the veil is tantamount to hostility towards (our) values,” said the Islamic Republic’s judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Edschei, according to reports from several Iranian media on Saturday. Those “who commit such abnormal acts will be punished” and “persecuted without mercy.”
Edschei left open what penalties the women have to reckon with. The demonstrative renunciation of a headscarf covering the hair has become a central symbol of resistance against the government in Tehran.
Months of protests were triggered by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody in mid-September. The vice squad arrested her for allegedly wearing her headscarf incorrectly. In addition to protest rallies, more and more Iranian women are publicly showing their rejection of the government by not wearing a headscarf.
Last Thursday, the Ministry of the Interior described the headscarf as “one of the civilizing foundations of the Iranian nation” and appealed to citizens to confront unveiled women. Under Islamic Sharia, introduced in 1979, women are required to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothing to hide their figure. Violators face fines or arrest.
