2 actresses face charges for flouting hijab law in Iran
Tehran, Apr 25 (EFE).- Two prominent Iranian actresses face up to two months in jail for flouting rules forcing women to cover their heads in public.
Actresses Pantea Bahram and Katayoun Riahi were accused of “the crime of removing the hijab in public and posting photos on the internet,” the ISNA agency reported on Tuesday, citing the Tehran police, which has referred the case to the Prosecutor’s Office.
Bahram caused quite a stir last week when photos of her without a headscarf at the screening of a television series went viral.
The venue manager was later fired for failing to remove the actress from the theater.
Riahi, who was arrested in November for posting videos without a veil, recently published several photos on social media in which she was not wearing a headscarf.
Many women in the Islamic Republic have stopped wearing the garment – which has been mandatory in Iran since 1983 – as a form of protest following the September death in police custody of Mahsa Amini.
The young Kurdish woman was arrested by Iran’s morality police last September and died in custody.
Amini’s death sparked nationwide protests calling for women’s rights and broader freedoms.
The protests have largely been propelled by young people and women but a government crackdown has led to the deaths of some 500 people, the arrest of thousands and the execution of four protesters.
Iranian police launched an operation on Apr. 15 using surveillance cameras to identify and target women not wearing a veil.
The education and health ministries announced in early April that female students not wearing a veil would be banned from attending universities and colleges.
On Monday Iranian authorities banned women not wearing a headscarf from entering museums and historical sites.EFE
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