Criminal Charges Filed Against Baran Kowsari and Rokhsareh Behnia'tad for Not Wearing Mandatory Hijab

Following the publication of a hijab-less image of Rokhsareh Behnia'tad and Baran Kowsari, the Tehran Prosecutor's Office announced that it has filed criminal charges against "a female director and a cinema actress" for "unveiling in a public place" and has opened a legal case. According to reports from state-run news agencies in Iran on Wednesday, September 7, the judiciary of the Islamic Republic stated that "this female director and her daughter attended a film critique session without adhering to hijab rules," and for this reason, a legal case was opened against them in the Tehran Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office. Previously, photos of Baran Kowsari, a prominent actress, and her mother Rokhsareh Behnia'tad, a veteran director and filmmaker, were circulated on social media showing them at a critique session for the film 'Someone Always Gets Lost,' dressed in optional attire and without mandatory hijab. Although the judiciary did not name these two individuals, social media users identified them based on the details provided in the prosecutor's announcement. Journalist Masoud Kazemi pointed out that the case against these two female filmmakers occurred during the presidency of Medicalian, sarcastically stating on X: "Yes, it matters who the president is." A significant number of female actors in Iran removed their mandatory hijab following the nationwide protests in 2021 in support of individual and social rights for women, an act that faced severe backlash from Islamic Republic officials, leading to legal cases and arrests of many of them. Additionally, in recent days, one of the lawyers for Afsaneh Bayegan stated that the Guidance Court has sentenced this veteran actress to a monetary fine instead of prison time and banned her from social media activity and leaving Iran for what the judiciary termed as "publishing obscene images." The Islamic Republic officials continue to exert pressure on women to enforce mandatory hijab, and according to reports, in recent days, government forces shot a young woman named Arzoo Badri in connection with the hijab issue, although the judiciary claimed that the matter was not related to hijab. The U.S. government expressed serious concern on Sunday, September 4, regarding media reports about Arzoo Badri's situation, stating that the Islamic Republic has not learned from the killing of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the morality police.