‘Reformists’ Warn On Hijab Crackdown, Journalists Call It Suppression

Two weeks into the latest round of violent crackdowns on Iranian women refusing to wear the hijab, certain so-called reformist and moderate politicians and commentators are cautioning the state about its harsh approach.

At the same time, some female journalists assert that the crackdown is part of the regime's ongoing strategy to stifle dissent, by reinforcing the ideological pillars of the Islamic government.

Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, the country’s former Communications Minister, said "although hijab may be a rule Allah wants to be enforced, yet it cannot be over and above the very essence of religion which is based on monotheism."

Writing on his Telegram channel, the former Minister stated that "as the holy prophet and other Muslim saints have stated, the rules of Islam cannot be established by using force against Muslims.”

Jahromi also criticized the government for not taking any lessons from the failure of previous rounds of crackdowns on Iranian women.

Notably, Jahromi – a former intelligence officer – was sanctioned by Western countries, including the US, for being a key player in the Iranian “regime’s censorship and surveillance campaign, which intensified in the wake of anti-regime protests” in 2019.

Jahromi made the statement prior to Mehdi Fazaeli, a member of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's Office, informing reporters on Friday that Khamenei had warned certain Iranian officials about their inappropriate approach to hijab enforcement.

This month, multiple reports show that the state’s so-called morality police and other entities have once again escalated the violent enforcement of the mandated Islamic hijab, after Khamenei called for strict measures against women.

Female Iranian journalists, including Roya Karimi Majd, have meanwhile highlighted that the violent treatment of women may have been an attempt to suppress potential dissent in Iran.

Quoting reports that said more Iranians paid attention to the news of the crackdown on women than those who reacted to the news of tensions between Iran and Israel, she wrote on X: "Is the Islamic Republic trying to distract Iranians' attention from the tensions with Israel by the widespread crackdown on women? This is a show of power in the streets to scare all those who might think of an anti-war demonstration! Women are being beaten up so that other protesters take a lesson."

In an article on Iran International’s Persian-language website, gender studies researcher Zahra Bagheri Shad stated, "Ali Khamenei has described defying hijab as a politically haram [prohibited] issue. That is because women who defy the compulsory hijab are the most powerful; social force to defeat regressive elements. Despite repeated harsh crackdowns, Iranian women will not put a step back."

Cleric Mohammad Ali Abtahi who was so-called reformist President Mohammad Khatami's Chief of Staff in the late 1990s and early 2000s warned hardliners "to be mindful of unity in the country rather than suppressing women at a time a war is going on between Iran and Israel”.

"Although revolutionaries across the globe praised Iran for its direct confrontation with Israel, the news of the violent crackdown on women in the streets of Iran only made Israel and other opponents of the Islamic Republic happy," Abtahi said.

He stressed that the crackdown on Iranian women undermined Iranians’ pride world over as a result of the massive drone and missile attacks on Israel.

In 2003, while Abtahi served as Vice President, Iranian-Canadian journalist Zahra Kazemi was raped and tortured by Iranian officials at Tehran’s Evin Prison, ultimately succumbing to her injuries. After days of denial by the government, Abtahi conceded that Kazemi died as a result of being beaten.