A female college student was jailed in Iran this weekend after stripping down and walking around campus in her underwear in apparent protest of supposedly being beaten for not wearing a headscarf.
A now-viral video shows the young woman wearing a bra and underwear in the courtyard of Tehran’s Azad University.
Other footage released later shows individuals pushing her into a car and driving away.
The unidentified student was protesting security personnel who had previously ripped her clothing when confronting her for not wearing a headscarf, which Iranian law requires all women to wear in public, according to Iran International.
After stripping in protest, the woman was filmed from above sitting on a wall, with one man approaching her and making a phone conversation before nonchalantly strolling away as puzzled students watched.
A university rep said, “Campus security intervened and handed the individual over to law enforcement authorities,” blaming the incident on “an indecent act by a student.”
An online student organization claimed the woman was also assaulted by plainclothes security officers during her detention, leaving her seriously bleeding when her head was struck, possibly against a pillar or the car’s door.
“Blood stains from the student were reportedly seen on the car’s tires,” the online groups said, according to Iran International.
She was taken to a police station and later admitted to a mental health center, according to the report.
The underwear-clad demonstrator has already become a symbol for people opposing the Islamic Republic’s harsh treatment of individuals who break its regulations.
A prominent UN official expressed alarm about the student’s imprisonment.
“I will be monitoring this incident closely, including the authorities’ response,” Mai Sato, the UN special monitor on human rights, wrote on X alongside a video of the incident.
Iranian law requires all women, Muslim or not, to wear headscarves in public, and the government has increased enforcement of such laws since 2022, when Mahsa Amini died in custody after being arrested for hijab violations, resulting in protests in which security forces killed over 550 people and arrested thousands more.
A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.
Nnamdi Okoli
