Iranian activist is sentenced to 178 lashes and 18 months in prison after she was arrested for not wearing a hijab
An Iranian activist has been sentenced to 178 lashes and 18 months in prison after being arrested for not wearing a hijab.
Hamideh Zarei, a Gilak activist and former political prisoner, was released earlier this month from Rasht Central Prison after spending nearly a month behind bars – only to now face a brutal new sentence.
Her latest sentence includes nine months of imprisonment and 74 lashes for ‘disrupting public order,’ nine months for ‘resisting law enforcement officers,’ 74 lashes for ‘insulting an officer on duty,’ and 30 lashes for ‘causing non-visible injuries.’
The Tehran University masters student’s ordeal began on February 3, when she appeared at the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office in Rasht as part of a forced residency sentence.
She was detained for not wearing the mandatory hijab, which led to her receiving new charges.
Zarei spent 29 days in detention at Rasht Central Prison before being released on bail on March 3, according to a report from the Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights.
During her time in custody, the activist was reportedly physically assaulted by two officers from the Rasht Prosecutor’s Office Protection Unit, which resulted in wrist injuries and severe bruising.
But this is just the latest chapter in the regime’s relentless targeting of Zarei.
Hamideh Zarei, a Gilak activist and former political prisoner has been sentenced to 178 lashes and 18 months in prison after being detained detained for not wearing the mandatory hijab, which led to her receiving new charges
Her latest sentence includes nine months of imprisonment and 74 lashes for ‘disrupting public order,’ nine months for ‘resisting law enforcement officers,’ 74 lashes for ‘insulting an officer on duty,’ and 30 lashes for ‘causing non-visible injuries’
A woman takes part in the Freedom Rally for Iran demonstration against the Iranian regime on February 22, 2023 in Rome
In June last year, she was arrested after being summoned to Rasht Court and sent to Lakan Prison, only to be released on June 10 after securing a judicial bond.
But her troubles with Iranian authorities date back to 2022.
In November 2023, the Karaj Revolutionary Court, under Judge Mousa Asafolhosseini, sentenced her to one year in prison for ‘propaganda against the Islamic Republic of Iran.’
After accepting the verdict, the sentence was reduced to nine months.
Zarei was first detained in Karaj on May 29, 2023, and imprisoned in Kachouii Prison until her release on February 22, 2024, after serving her sentence.
However, she was also banned from traveling for two years, prohibited from social media activity for two years, and forced into exile in Rasht.
Her first known arrest took place on November 3, 2022, when she was detained for attending a memorial marking the 40th day since the killing of Hadis Najafi – a young woman shot dead by security forces during the 2022 protests.
She was imprisoned in Kachouii Prison before being released on February 7, 2024, under a so-called ‘pardon’ directive.
Hamideh Zarei’s case is yet another chilling example of Iran’s brutal suppression of women’s rights activists.
With her new harsh prison sentence and the barbaric punishment of 178 lashes, the Iranian regime continues its merciless crackdown on those who dare to defy its oppressive laws.
A female student was arrested in Iran in November after she was spotted walking around the campus of Tehran’s Islamic Azad University in her underwear
Mahsa Amini, 22, died in 2022 three days after falling into a coma following her arrest
Mahsa Amini was arrested after failing to observe Iran’s ultra-conservative dress code
It comes after an Iranian student was arrested and taken to a mental hospital by morality police after she stripped down to her underwear and walked around Tehran’s Islamic Azad University in November last year.
Footage of the brave moment saw the student sitting and pacing back and forth with her arms crossed in front of stunned onlookers at the university’s science and research campus before she was detained by security forces and forcibly put in a car.
Following her arrest, there were widespread calls from human rights activists on social media for her immediate release after she reportedly sustained severe injuries during her violent arrest.
A growing number of women have defied authorities by discarding their veils after nationwide protests that followed the death in September 2022 of a young Iranian Kurdish woman in the custody of the morality police for allegedly violating hijab rules.
Mahsa Amini, 22, died after being arrested by morality police for not wearing her hijab correctly.
Her death spearheaded mass ‘Women, life, freedom’ protests which continued for months in the country.
A year later, in October 2023, an Iranian teenager named Armita Geravand was injured in an alleged encounter with police on Tehran’s metro while not wearing a head covering. She later died in hospital.
