Massive victory for Iranian women; Iran abolishes morality police

Iran has abolished the Gasht-e Ershad or 'Guidance Patrol', two months since protests broke out over the custodial death of Mahsa Amini, who was picked up by the morality police for allegedly violating the country's stringent female dress code.

Mahsa's death triggered a wave of protests across the country, often leading to a violent confrontation between demonstrators and security forces.

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Iran's Attorney General Mohammad Jafar Montazeri was quoted by the ISNA news agency as saying that the morality police have been abolished as they have nothing to do with the judiciary.

To note, Former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad established the Gasht-e Ershad or 'Guidance Patrol' to spread the culture of modesty and hijab. The announcement with regard to the abolition of the morality police comes hours after Montazeri said that the country's Parliament and its judiciary were working on whether the law that mandates women to cover their heads needs to be altered.

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Iran's republican and Islamic foundations are constitutionally entrenched, but there can be flexiblity with regard to implementing the Constitution, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said in televised comments on Saturday.

Iran had been witnessing protests since reports emerged that 22-year-old Mahsa had died following her arrest by the morality police. The protests following the young girl's custodial death posed an open challenge to the Islamic regime's authority. 

Women worldwide joined the protests, with many chopping off their hair and even burning their head coverings while shouting anti-government slogans. Many women in Iran, including in the capital Teheran, stopped using the hijab.

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• Gasht-e Ershad
• Guidance Patrol
• Iran
• Iran abolishes morality police
• Iran female dress code
• Mahsa Amini death
• Teheran
• custodial death