Ex-President Warns Of Overthrow After Return Of Morality Police

Iran’s former president has warned that the return of morality police to streets may lead to the regime's “overthrow by itself and social collapse”.

In a meeting with his advisors, Mohammad Khatami said: "It seems that the danger of self-overthrow, which has been talked about many times, stands out more than ever with the return of morality police."

The ‘morality’ police in Iran have returned to the streets of Tehran and other cities ahead of the first anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death in police custody last September, which triggered mass unrest in its wake.

The spokesman of Iran’s Police announced Sunday that special patrols are now deployed to deal with the continued wave of hijab rebels. Saeed Montazerolmahdi said those who "still insist on breaking the norms" will be dealt with.

On Monday, Khatami, who was president for eight years, said he was surprised by the "imprudence of the key officials" of the Islamic Republic because such “wrong methods will make the society more tense than before.”

Meanwhile, Tasnim news agency, affiliated to the Revolutionary Guard, said the decision to enforce the mandatory hijab by police was ordered by President Ebrahim Raisi, Interior Minister Ahmed Vahidi, and the judiciary. "The police are forced to execute this plan along with all their other duties," wrote Tasnim.

A video which went viral on Saturday showed Tehran's morality police arresting a teenage girl without compulsory hijab in the Gisha neighborhood.