Iranian Activist Hamideh Zarei Sentenced To 178 Lashes And 18 Months In Prison For Defying Hijab Law

Iranian activist Hamideh Zarei has been sentenced to 178 lashes and 18 months in prison after being arrested for not wearing a hijab. The Gilak activist and former political prisoner was released earlier this month from Rasht Central Prison after nearly a month behind bars, only to now face severe punishment.

Arrested for Not Wearing The Mandatory Hijab

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.”

Zarei, a master’s student at Tehran University, was detained 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 arrested for not wearing the mandatory hijab, leading to new charges against her.

She spent 29 days in detention at Rasht Central Prison before being released on bail on March 3, according to the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights. Reports indicate that during her time in custody, she was physically assaulted by two officers from the Rasht Prosecutor’s Office Protection Unit, leaving her with wrist injuries and severe bruising.

Hamideh Zarei Case And History of Persecution

This is not the first time Zarei has faced persecution from Iranian authorities. In June 2023, 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.

Her legal troubles 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. Additionally, she was banned from traveling for two years, prohibited from social media activity for two years, and forced into exile in Rasht.

Hamideh Zarei And Crackdown on Women’s Rights Activists

Her earliest known arrest occurred 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. Zarei was imprisoned in Kachouii Prison before being released on February 7, 2024, under a so-called “pardon” directive.

Zarei’s case is another chilling example of Iran’s relentless suppression of women’s rights activists. With a brutal prison sentence and the barbaric punishment of 178 lashes, the Iranian regime continues its crackdown on those who defy its oppressive laws.

Her sentencing follows another alarming case involving an Iranian student who was arrested and taken to a mental hospital by the morality police after stripping down to her underwear and walking around Tehran’s Islamic Azad University in November 2023.

Growing Defiance Against Hijab Laws

Footage of the incident showed the student pacing back and forth with her arms crossed in front of stunned onlookers at the university’s science and research campus before being detained by security forces and forcibly placed in a car. Human rights activists took to social media, demanding her immediate release, as reports surfaced that she sustained severe injuries during her violent arrest.

A growing number of Iranian women have defied authorities by discarding their veils, following the nationwide protests triggered by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September 2022. Amini, an Iranian Kurdish woman, died after being arrested by the morality police for allegedly violating hijab rules, sparking the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement that led to months of unrest.

In October 2023, another tragic incident occurred when Iranian teenager Armita Geravand was allegedly injured in an encounter with police on Tehran’s metro for not wearing a head covering. She later died in the hospital.

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