100 Activists Rap Tehran’s Compulsory Hijab Crackdown

One hundred political prisoners and activists lambasted Iran’s latest crackdowns on mandatory hijab, branding it “hostile insistence on homogenizing people’s lifestyles”

Iran’s streets are once again the scene of the government’s 'military campaign against oppressed, enlightened and courageous women of the country', said the signatories of the statement, further adding that the government’s policy of enforcing compulsory hijab with force is simply an instrument to intimidate dissenters.

At a time when a war looks to be brewing and when systemic mismanagement and corruption in government have made life miserable for Iranians, Iran has decided to wage a war at home against people in the streets, the statement claimed, signatories including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi.

On April 13, Iran launched its first ever direct offensive against Israeli territory with more than 350 drones and cruise and ballistic missiles, 99% of which were downed by Israel and a US-led coalition, according to the Israeli army. Through its proxies, Iran has also been targeting US facilities in the Middle East and international shipping in a joint effort since October 7 when Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza invaded Israel, triggering the longest Gaza war since the terror group took over the strip.

On the same day as the aerial assault, the Iranian government started to implement its new plan – called Project Nour – to crack down on women who defy compulsory hijab. Activists and observers contend that the coincidence of the two events is no accident and that the regime intends to quell any kind of dissent, including anti-war voices, under the pretext of hijab enforcement.

Former political prisoner Abolfazl Ghadiani (Qadiani) called Ali Khamenei a “power-worshipping tyrant” on the back of the new policies, saying Iran’s Supreme Leader has dispatched his forces to the streets to suppress women as he fears a likely revival of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement of 2022. The uprising, sparked by the death in morality police custody of Mahsa Amini, has led to the greatest challenge to the theocratic dictatorship since the founding of the Islamic Republic in 1979.