
A female college student at Tehran's Azad University in Iran was recently arrested after stripping down to her underwear and walking around campus. This act was an apparent protest against the country's strict hijab laws, which mandate that all women, regardless of their faith, wear headscarves in public.

The incident was captured on video, showing the young woman in a bra and panties in the university courtyard. The protest followed an alleged assault by security forces who reportedly ripped her clothing while confronting her for not wearing a hijab.
The arrest was allegedly violent, with reports from an online student group claiming that plainclothes security forces assaulted the woman during her arrest, leaving her bleeding heavily after her head was struck, possibly against a pillar or the car door.
Blood stains were reportedly seen on the car’s tires. Following her arrest, she was taken to a police station and later admitted to a mental-health facility, with university officials attributing her actions to "severe psychological distress."
This protest has drawn massive attention, becoming emblematic of the ongoing struggle against the Islamic Republic’s enforcement of hijab laws. The UN special monitor on human rights, Mai Sato, expressed concern over the incident, stating, "I will be monitoring this incident closely, including the authorities’ response."
The Iranian government has intensified its enforcement of hijab laws since the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022, which sparked widespread protests resulting in over 550 deaths and thousands of arrests.
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