Iran hesitates to clamp down on defiance of headscarf rules as war and economic pressures mount
Hard-liners are urging tougher enforcement even as authorities back away, after protests since 2022 killed more than 500 people, officials and activists said.
- In Tehran, enforcement of mandatory hijab rules has eased dramatically in recent years, with women increasingly appearing in public without headscarves. Authorities have largely backed off strict enforcement to avoid public unrest amid ongoing wartime conditions.
- Following the Sept. 16, 2022, death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, which led to a crackdown killing more than 500 people, Iran saw a sharp decline in hijab enforcement. The mandate had been a defining tenet of clerical rule since 1979.
- Activist Pouran Nazemi noted that officials remain hesitant to enforce strict dress codes because, "They are afraid of protests." Lawyer Sedigheh Vasmaghi, a former political prisoner, described the choice to forgo headscarves as "civil disobedience toward the government."
- Basij chief Hossein Taeb urged stricter enforcement to protect "internal cohesion" last week, according to semiofficial reports. However, politician Gholam Ali Haddad Adel countered that authorities cannot risk addressing the issue now, stating, "We can't enter into that front as we ought to because of wartime conditions."
- A hard-line newspaper recently labeled the removal of headscarves a "security threat," reflecting ongoing internal friction. Meanwhile, the office of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has remained publicly silent since succeeding his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who died on Feb. 28.
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Iran hesitates to clamp down on defiance of headscarf rules
Women sit at outdoor cafes without headscarves and wearing crop tops. Men in shorts and women in leggings exercise together in parks. At sidewalk concerts, women stop to dance and literally let their hair down.
Iran hesitates to enforce headscarf rules amid war, economic pressures
Women sit at outdoor cafes without headscarves and wearing crop tops. Men in shorts and women in leggings exercise together in parks. At sidewalk concerts, women stop to dance and literally let their hair down. The scenes from the Iranian capital of Tehran, shared in social media videos, point to how dramatically enforcement of social restrictions has eased in the Islamic Republic in recent years. That's in part because of the mass protests that…
Iran hesitates to clamp down on defiance of headscarf rules as war and economic pressures mount – WTOP News
Women sit at outdoor cafes without headscarves and wearing crop tops. Men in shorts and women in leggings exercise together in parks. At sidewalk concerts, women stop to dance and literally let their hair down. The scenes from the Iranian capital of Tehran, shared in social media videos, point to how dramatically enforcement of social...
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