Iranian students stripped in protest against harassment by hijab enforcers

A female Iranian student was arrested on Saturday for removing her clothes in protest after allegedly being assaulted by security forces at Tehran’s Islamic Azad University for wearing an inappropriate hijab.

A video showing the student sitting in the courtyard of the university’s Science and Research Branch has gone viral on Iranian social media.

A university official later confirmed her arrest. “Following an indecent act by a student at the university’s science and research department, campus security intervened and handed the person over to the law enforcement authorities,” wrote Amir Mahjoub, director general of public relations at Islamic Azad University, on X. “The motives and reasons behind The student’s actions are currently under investigation.”

The same day, Amir Kabir Newsletter, a student group on Telegram, reported details of the incident, saying the student undressed after being harassed for not wearing a headscarf and having her clothes torn by security forces.

During the student’s arrest, she was subjected to severe physical abuse, including her head hitting either a car door or a pillar, causing profuse bleeding. “Blood stains from the student were reportedly seen on the tires of the car,” the report noted.

Since the rise of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement in Iran, sparked by the September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini while in police custody for hijab violations, hardliners have stepped up efforts to enforce strict dress codes for women. Despite widespread public defiance, government measures to strengthen mandatory hijab laws have escalated, resulting in the closure of businesses and impounding of vehicles for hijab offences.

Project Noor, launched on April 13 to enforce hijab rules, has led to a notable increase in the presence of police forces, Basij paramilitary units and plainclothes officers in public spaces. In addition, universities such as Alzahra University in Tehran have adopted facial recognition technology at entrance doors, denying entry to students whose appearance does not comply with strict hijab laws.

During his campaign, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian denounced the proposed hijab legislation as the “Plan of Darkness” and vowed to end morality police patrols and the use of violence against women for non-compliance with hijab rules.

Nevertheless, in October, Iran’s Guardian Council approved the controversial Hijab and Chastity Bill, which is now under parliamentary review.