Female Student Protests Hijab Law in Iran Amid Intensified Crackdowns

Islamic Azad University, the site of Daryaei's protest. Photo Credit: Wikipedia

On November 2, Ahou Daryaei, a student at Tehran’s Islamic Azad University, was detained by Iranian authorities after publicly removing her clothing in protest of Iran’s mandatory hijab laws. She was reportedly harassed and assaulted by the morality police stationed at the university, who ripped her headscarf and tore at her clothes inside the campus for improper hijab compliance. The incident, captured on video, quickly went viral on Iranian social media, drawing widespread attention domestically and internationally. Daryaei has been reportedly released to her family without charges under the “Hijab and Chastity” law.  

Eyewitnesses reported that the student’s protest began following a confrontation with the morality police who allegedly tore her clothing and physically assaulted her. After disrobing in protest, the student was forcibly detained by campus security and was later picked up in a van by law enforcement. For weeks, her identity and location remained unknown. Reports later confirmed her transfer to a psychiatric facility, sparking outrage among activists who condemned the use of psychiatric diagnoses to discredit political dissent. Amir Mahjob, the Director General of Public Relations at Azad University, stated that “at the police station...it was found that she was under severe mental pressure and had a mental disorder.” These remarks have drawn sharp criticism from human rights organizations, who argue that such framing seeks to delegitimize acts of resistance. 

The incident involving Daryaei has drawn widespread condemnation from human rights organizations, activists, and public figures. Amnesty International called for the student’s immediate release and an independent investigation into the alleged violence she endured. Domestically, the event has reignited debates on the morality police and the role of psychiatry in suppressing dissent. Activists such as Azam Jangravi have argued that labeling protesters as mentally unstable is a tactic to undermine the legitimacy of their grievances. 

The protest is the latest in a series of acts of defiance against Iran’s strict dress code laws, which have been heavily enforced since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The death of 22-year-old student Mahsa Amini in September 2022 under police custody for allegedly violating hijab regulations sparked nationwide protests under the slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom.” More than 500 people were reportedly killed during the months of the protests. During the time, several professors in some of Iran’s most prestigious universities were expelled, prompting a debate over whether their terminations were related to support for last year’s nationwide protests. You can read it here.

Since Amini’s death, the Iranian government has intensified its efforts to enforce mandatory hijab laws. Initiatives such as the “Noor Plan” have been implemented by the State Security Force since around mid-April of this year. Surveillance on campuses has been stepped up since early April. On April 10, the Voice of Al-Zahra University Students Telegram channel reported “stricter security measures” and the installation of what they said were “face recognition cameras” at the entrances and exits of the women’s university in Tehran. Some universities, such as the University of Tehran, have deployed their own ‘hijab enforcers’. Mohammad Mighimi, acting president of the University of Tehran, confirmed the presence of hijab enforcers on campus as far back as last November. He said they were women with “seminary education” organized into campus monitoring groups.

The Azad University incident is not isolated. In the aftermath of Mahsa Amini’s killing, scores of female students have been arrested for defying hijab laws or participating in protests. Although mass protests have subsided, many face harsh penalties, including imprisonment, academic suspension, and public defamation. In a press release, the United Nations Human Rights group stated that women and girls in Iran were living in a system “that relegates them to second-class citizens.” Activists note that the government’s crackdown has mainly targeted younger generations, who have been at the forefront of the protests. For instance, several students at Tehran and Sharif universities were detained in July 2023 for staging sit-ins and refusing to wear the hijab on campus. Reports indicate that these students were subjected to physical abuse during detention and faced lengthy interrogations aimed at extracting confessions of foreign influence or subversive intentions.

Internationally, the Woman, Life, Freedom movement continues to inspire solidarity protests, with demonstrators cutting their hair or burning hijabs in symbolic acts of support. Governments and organizations worldwide have also expressed concern over Iran’s escalating human rights violations, calling for more substantial diplomatic pressure on Tehran. Despite mounting repression, acts of resistance like that of the Azad University student highlight the enduring resilience of Iranian women and youth. Narges Mohammadi, the jailed Iranian human rights activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, said in a statement that the woman’s movement  was a show of “defiance. against  a system that has oppressed women. Activists emphasize that such protests underscore the urgency of addressing systemic inequalities and the state’s abuse of power. While the Iranian government has doubled down on its enforcement measures, the growing visibility of dissent signals a broader shift in public consciousness.

Endangered Scholars Worldwide (ESW) stands in solidarity with those who strive for freedom and safety  in Iran. We condemn the Iranian government’s systematic and recurrent breaches of international human rights law and the ill-treatment of protesters, students, academics, and women. Mandatory veiling laws infringe on numerous rights, such as equality, freedom of expression, freedom of religion and belief, privacy, non-discrimination, and personal and bodily autonomy. In its March 2024 report, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Iran (FFMI) determined that Iranian authorities had perpetrated the crime against humanity of gender-based persecution. The FFMI found that the authorities have “committed a series of extensive, sustained and continuing acts that individually constitute human rights violations, directed against women [and] girls…and, cumulatively, constitute what the mission assesses to be persecution.”

We call upon all international organizations and academic and professional associations devoted to the promotion and defense of human rights to join us in urging the Iranian government to end this ideologically motivated and inhumane crackdown on university campuses, disproportionately targeting women and young girls. We ask for the international community’s full attention and to make all efforts to get the Iranian government to honor their obligations under international humanitarian law and human rights treaties.

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