The Islamic Republic of Iran Uses Global Distractions to Further Crack Down on Women
As tensions continue to mount in the Middle East, the Islamic Republic of Iran is seizing the opportunity to further oppress women, hoping the world’s attention remains elsewhere.
Aida Shakarmi, the sister of Nika Shakarmi, who was killed in the Women, Life, Freedom movement protests, was detained on Wednesday by Iran’s ‘morality’ police for not adhering to hijab laws. According to her father, the university student remains in custody.
Iranian women’s rights activist Masih Alinejad shared a photo of the two sisters on X with the caption: “Nika Shakarami, only 16 years old, took to the streets after the killing of Mahsa Amini by the morality police and set her headscarf on fire, which led to her murder at the hands of the regime. Yesterday, her sister Aida went to the street without a hijab and was arrested by the same regime… If the world does not unite with us, the women of Iran, to fight against one of the most dangerous regimes, believe me, this virus will spread to infect the rest of the world.”
Tehran’s police chief, Abbas Ali Mohammadian, announced that businesses failing to adhere to strict hijab regulations risk being shut down.
The resurgence of ‘morality’ police on the streets is particularly noticeable in central Tehran, Iran’s capital, which is now heavily patrolled by police, vans, and motorcycle patrols.
“I saw 30 police in one street trying to arrest women. Usually, it’s three or four,” Nelly Bagheri, 24, told More to Her Story. “When I saw them, I ran. Because there were so many people running, they couldn’t get me,”
Iran Human Rights reported seeing an increased ‘morality police’ presence at major crossings in Tehran, calling it “their most significant show of force since the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising.”
There are reports of cafes and restaurants dismissing female employees and hiring individuals solely to enforce hijab compliance.
“The pressure is so much that some cafes and restaurants have fired all the female employees, even the ones who stay in the kitchen, even the ones people can’t see,” said Ms. Bagheri. “Some of these cafes and restaurants have hired people who are not waiters and have no experience; their only job is to enforce the hijab. Once, I encountered one of these people. I asked him for a tea, and he said, “I don’t get orders. I just ask women to wear the hijab.”
An anonymous Google review for Eastgah Food Hall in Tehran — a cafe where this is reportedly happening — warns women against visiting due to its strict enforcement of women’s dress codes.
“They keep warning [women] about the shawl falling; I don’t suggest they come at all,” it says.
Another review by Mohsen Karami likens the cafe’s owner to a Basiji, a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The review reads: “Unfortunately, they are stuck on women’s clothing like the Ershad patrol [the ‘morality’ police].”
On Friday, Israel launched an attack against Iran, according to two Israeli and three Iranian officials. Despite the threat of escalating regional conflict, Iran’s misplaced priorities are clear in its continued campaign to systematically suppress the rights of women and girls.
“Even during escalating regional tensions, Iranian authorities have prioritized their brutal repression of women, including reported arrests under Iran’s draconian compulsory dress laws,” Nahid Naghshbandi, acting Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch, told More to Her Story. “With Iran’s morality police reportedly back on the streets, it is clear that Iran’s domestic harsh crackdown on dissent remains unwavering no matter how Middle East regional conflict dynamics play out in the coming period.”
Some women, like 36-year-old Darya* in Tehran, fear that the regime will use this moment of heightened geopolitical tensions to further crack down on women — and the world won’t care.
“All the Western media is talking about war,” she told More to Her Story. “They don’t care about the Islamic Republic’s war against us.”
*Names have been changed.