Mandatory Hijab at Tehran University of Art; 'Many' Protesting Students Arrested

As protests continue among students at Tehran University of Art against the mandatory hijab, student councils across the country announced that 'many' of these students have been arrested by plainclothes forces and taken to an unknown location. On Saturday, June 17, the student councils reported that while police and special forces were present in front of the National Garden campus of Tehran University of Art, plainclothes forces acted to 'kidnap' and transfer a large number of students. According to this student council, security agents attempted to force students to wear hijabs in several faculties and female dormitories. The report states that security forces at the entrances of the Music and Cinema and Theater faculties threatened female students that if they refused to wear the hijab, they would face serious consequences, including being barred from exams. So far, students from several universities, including Tehran, Beheshti, Tarbiat Modares, and Mazandaran, have issued statements supporting the protesting students against the mandatory hijab. Protests against the mandatory hijab began after security forces at Tehran University of Art prevented around 40 students from entering the university on June 13, citing inappropriate dress, and threatened them with suspension. Following this, many students at the National Garden campus staged a sit-in in protest against the mandatory hijab. The protesters faced beatings from security agents and were deprived of access to food and water. Mojtaba Hashemi, a former member of the Tehran University Student Association, recently reported in an interview with VOA about the pressure on students to enforce mandatory hijab. In the wake of recent nationwide protests, an increasing number of women have engaged in civil disobedience by removing their hijabs and appearing in public without them. The Iranian government's efforts to confront women opposing the mandatory hijab through widespread punitive and disciplinary measures have so far been unsuccessful. Reports indicate ongoing repression and arrests of students at Tehran University of Art, with 435 students facing suspension or expulsion.