University of Beheshti President Defends 'Fire-at-Will' Activists: Security's Entry into Classrooms for Hijab Reminder Was a Sense of Responsibility

Following the 'attack by security forces' on the library and classrooms of the psychology department at Beheshti University, and the subsequent strike and protests by students, the university president stated that this incident was related to the 'excessive sense of responsibility' of one security personnel who 'felt the need to give a reminder.' Mahmoud Reza Aghamiri also emphasized that professors are obliged to remind and advise on hijab issues, and that headscarves will be provided to students to enter the university. The president of Beheshti University also announced the termination of collaboration with one professor due to their activism, stating that not all activist professors were dealt with. While the university president defended the 'security' force, students reported that this force bizarrely attacked the classroom and students under the pretext of enforcing hijab rules while a professor was present. According to reports from student news channels, security agents and individuals with 'covered faces' attacked the library and classrooms on Tuesday, November 29, seizing student IDs from girls whose headscarves had fallen off. Students from this department described the incident in a statement published on the Telegram channel of the 'National Student Guild Councils' as 'one of the ugliest days of their academic career' and a threat to 'the right to security of students.' Following this 'attack by security forces,' students from this department refrained from attending classes on Tuesday, November 30, and Wednesday, December 1. The National Student Guild Councils recently issued a statement titled 'The Rampage of Mandatory Hijab Patrols in Universities,' reporting an increase in student summons to disciplinary committees, describing 'this level of confrontation' with students as 'unprecedented' even compared to the peak of protests last year. The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami, claimed in October of this year that 'enemies' consider universities as 'the focal point of all their efforts' to 'distort minds, capture hearts, dominate the space of thought and beliefs of our youth.' Protests by a number of Sharif University students in support of protesting students at Beheshti University continue, alongside strikes at Beheshti University in protest against the 'attack by security' on classrooms under the pretext of hijab reminders. The disqualification of a large number of students in the elections of scientific associations at Beheshti University, the forced transfer of a student, and the suspension of a university professor indicate that pressure on academics in Iran continues, alongside the government's efforts to impose 'mandatory dress codes' in universities, identifying 'bad hijab' with identity recognition cameras.