Iran President Ebrahim Raisi wants to keep strict hijab rules despite fierce protests

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi wants to keep strict rules on women for hijab (headscarf) offences despite fierce protests in the country. According to a report by the German news agency dpa on Sunday (Apr 21), President Raisi said that respecting the hijab was not only a religious but also a political and legal obligation for Iranian women.

Raisi added that there was no doubt whatsoever that checks must continue to be carried out consistently. The president's remarks came more than a month after police and moral guardians in Iran once again stepped up a crackdown on headscarf violations.

Videos on social media showedclashes between women and moral guards during some checks.

Amini's death sparkednationwide protests

The death of Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in police custody in September 2022 sparked nationwide protests against the Islamic regime and its dress code. Amini was detained by the moral police because of an allegedly ill-fitting headscarf. A few days later, she died at the police station, allegedly as a result of police violence.

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Since her death, more and more Iranian women have ignored the mandatory headscarf rule, and hundreds have died in the protests.

Women subjected to 'draconian' surveillance on hijab rules

Last month, Amnesty International said that Iran was subjecting women to draconian surveillance on the hijab rules. In a report based on testimony from over 40 women inside Iran, Amnesty said that women were being targeted with "widespread surveillance" in public spaces and "mass police checks" targeting women drivers.

"In a sinister attempt to wear down resistance to compulsory veiling... Iran's authorities are terrorising women and girls by subjecting them to constant surveillance and policing," said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty's deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa.

(With inputs from agencies)