In Iran, authorities closed more than 150 stores as part of an intensified crackdown on the headscarf requirement. Police “unfortunately” had to shut down “137 shops and 18 restaurants and venues” in the country, police spokesman Said Montaserolmahdi said today, according to Tasnim news agency. Stores ignored “warnings” regarding the headscarf requirement. The measures followed an announcement by the Iranian police that breaches of duty would now be consistently punished.
Security forces will now crack down on women who violate the headscarf ban in “public places, in vehicles and elsewhere,” said a statement posted on the police website. Technologies would also be used to identify those affected – i.e. reconnaissance software.
Removing the hijab is a criminal offence, security police chief Hassan Mofakhami was quoted as saying in the statement. Those who break the law must be held accountable. This also applies to companies that allow women to remove their headscarves at work. They would be warned first, if it happened again they would have to wait for it to close.
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