Iran: Activists demand regime release student who took off clothes to protest women's oppression

Human rights activists are putting pressure on the Iranian regime to release a young Iranian woman who stripped down to her underwear at a university in the capital, Tehran, and walked around the area in what appeared to be an act of protest against the country's strict dress code laws, which force women to wear the hijab, the Islamic veil that covers the head and chest.

Footage showing the young woman, reportedly named Ahoo Daryaei, walking down the sidewalk in the Science and Research section of the Islamic Azad University and being detained law enforcement went viral on social media on Saturday, prompting a flood of messages of support for Daryaei and condemnation of the Iranian regime.

While the academic institution stated that the young woman suffered from a "mental disorder" and was transferred to a psychiatric hospital, a large number of messages appeared on social media rejecting the claims of the university authorities and expressed and described Daryaei's actions as part of the Women's campaign "Woman, Life, Freedom," through which many women have dared to defy the strict laws of the Islamic regime.

The video was initially posted on Amirkabir's Telegram channel, which describes itself as a student media outlet.

Amirkabir indicated that Daryaei had previously been accosted for not covering her head with the hijab, which angered her, leading her to decide to take off her clothes and walk around in her underwear. The young woman was then detained and taken to an undisclosed location.

The BBC indicated that a witness to the event stated that the woman entered her class at the university, began filming the students and exclaimed, "I have come to save you."

The witness added that the professor reprimanded the young woman for her actions, for which reason the student left the classroom screaming.

Mahsa Amini, a symbol of the struggle for women's freedom in Iran

The event took place amidst global outrage against the Iranian regime, especially after in late 2022, young Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini was killed while in police custody for not wearing a hijab in accordance with the strict rules of the Islamic government.

The killing led to a series of anti-government protests in Iran that were brutally repressed by the regime's security forces, which left more than 500 dead.

Amini has since become a symbol of the struggle for women's freedom in the country.

Organizations and activists demand the release of Daryaei

The organization Amnesty International called on Iranian authorities to release the young woman immediately and unconditionally after she was violently arrested. It added that she must be protected from torture and other ill-treatment, as well as be allowed to be reunited with her family and a lawyer.

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, an Iranian activist currently imprisoned in her country for criticizing the regime, spoke out on X in support of the young woman. "Women pay the price for defiance, but we do not bow down to force," she said.

She added that Daryaei "turned her body—long weaponized as a tool of repression—into a symbol of dissent. I call for her freedom & an end to the harassment of women."

Renowned activist Hossein Ronaghi stated, "The courage of this girl who was attacked because of hijab and others like her are the flames that will burn the roots of oppression."

Iranian-American writer and journalist Masih Alinejad argued on X that Daryaei's act is "a powerful reminder of Iranian women’s fight for freedom. Yes we use our bodies like weapons to fight back a regime that kills women for showing their hair."