What we know about the arrest of an Iranian student in her underwear outside her university in Tehran

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She walks barefoot on the asphalt, her stomach exposed, her arms crossed on her chest. In a few hours, images showing an Iranian student in her underwear in front of the prestigious Islamic Azad University went around the world.

The young woman, whose identity has not been revealed, undressed in front of the university this Saturday, November 2, and walked in the streets in her underwear, to protest against the harassment of militiamen from the Guards of the revolution. She was arrested at Tehranactivist groups reported on social media. What we know.

The student arrested in the street

First posted by the Iranian student site Amir Kabir, the young woman's video was published by numerous Persian sites including the legal site Dadban, the human rights group Hengaw and the news site Iran Wire. The video appears to have been taken by residents of a nearby building.

Other images show the young woman thrown into a car by men in plain clothes. According to the Amir Kabir website, she was beaten during the arrest.

“The Iranian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release” the young woman, declared Amnesty Iran, branch ofAmnesty internationalon X.

“The allegations of coups and of sexual violence against him during his arrest must be the subject of an independent and impartial investigation,” adds the organization.

An act of protest

The Iranian Fars agency reported the incident and published a blurred photo of the student.
According to the agency, the young woman wore “inappropriate” clothing to class and “stripped off” after being warned by security guards.

Islamic law in Iran imposes a very strict dress code for womenordered to wear headscarves and loose clothing concealing their shapes.

According to Fars, citing “witnesses,” the agents spoke “calmly” to the young woman and did not act aggressively.

A reaction from the university

The general director of public relations at Azad University, Amir Mahjoub, discussed the situation in a series of posts published on the social network university of research sciences, university security intervened and took him handed over to the police station. The motivation and reasons for this student’s action are currently being investigated.”

And, the latter clears the university, citing “mental disorders” at the origin of the young girl’s behavior.

On X, Amir Mahjoub also shared the video of a man, blurred, presented as the student's husband.

“She is the mother of two children and they cannot live without her,” says the man, before bursting into tears, reports franceinfowithout being able to establish in what context this video was made.

A wave of support

These images, which have gone viral, resonate well beyond Iran. And, as far as France, where personalities and political leaders from all sides have spoken on the subject.

The government spokesperson, Maud, reposted on X a video showing the student in underwear, this Sunday, November 3, 2024. “A nameless couragehead held high and hair blowing in the wind in the face of obscurantism which invisibilizes, demeans and destroys women,” she said.

“Our body, and everything we put – or not – to clothe it, belongs to us. Force to Iranian women, to Afghan women, to all those who suffer oppression,” also declared, on X, the environmentalist deputy Sandrine Rousseau. “Unbelievable courage,” greets Jordan Bardella, president of the National Rally (RN), on X.

The winner of the 2024 Goncourt Prize, the writer Kamel Daoud, also shared a photo of the student, on X.

These images shock public opinion all the more because they echo the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022, a young student arrested by the Iranian moral police for “wearing inappropriate clothing”.

With AFP

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