Interior Minister of the Islamic Republic has defended his forces’ behavior towards women amid an intensified crackdown.
A video circulating online showing the violent arrest of a woman by Iranian police has sparked outrage and renewed criticism of the country’s mandatory hijab laws.
Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi defended the police force’s actions while acknowledging that the video “did not accurately portray the situation.”
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The video shows officers bundling a woman into a morality police van, a vehicle used to detain women deemed to be improperly veiled.
Despite the video, Vahidi claimed the police acted “according to the rules of procedure.”
He accused online media of misrepresenting the event and called for “preventing the intersection and deviation of issues.”
The police information center admitted the officer’s actions were “illegal and unethical,” but still urged citizens to “obey the law and the order of arrest.”
However, lawyer Ali Mojtahedzadeh challenged the notion of it being an isolated incident.
He argued the “repetition and frequency” of such violence suggests a systemic problem, not individual mistakes.
Mojtahedzadeh warned that continued violence could lead to “a violent confrontation between citizens and the police.”
The latest enforcement of severe measures began on April 13, just hours before Iran launched hundreds of suicide drones and missiles at Israel.
Across Iran, there have been numerous reports of women being arrested and subjected to the use of force due to perceived violations of mandatory dress codes.
Users across social networks are participating in a spontaneous campaign using the hashtag “war against women” to document their experiences and observations regarding the government’s crackdown on the opponents of mandatory hijab.
Reports have surfaced detailing the use of repressive tactics, particularly on female students in various universities.
Moreover, pressure has also been mounting on civil activists, political dissenters, women political prisoners, and cultural figures.
Several videos have shown officials surveilling the streets and looking for women in breach of the Islamic Republic’s dress code laws.
The new crackdown comes almost two years after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for her alleged “improper” hijab.
The death of 22-year-old Amini unleashed months of mass protests across Iran and marked the biggest challenge to Iran’s clerical leaders since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Source » iranwire