The move, which the government did not confirm, might be a concession to the protest movement that erupted after the death of a young woman in the custody of the morality police.
A senior Iranian official said this weekend that Iran had abolished the morality police, the state media reported, after months of protests set off by the death of a young woman who was detained by the force for supposedly violating the country’s strict Islamic dress laws.
The morality police “was abolished by the same authorities who installed it,” Attorney General Mohammad Javad Montazeri said on Saturday during a meeting at which officials were discussing the unrest, according to state media reports.
It was unclear whether the statement amounted to a final decision by the theocratic government, which has neither announced the abolition of the morality police nor denied it. But if the force is abolished, the change will be unlikely to appease protesters who are still clashing with other security forces and have become so emboldened that some are calling for an end of the Islamic Republic.
The morality police is overseen by the Iranian police, not the attorney general, and there were suggestions on Sunday that the government might be trying to play down the significance of Mr. Montazeri ‘s remarks.
One state television channel, the Arabic-language Al Alam, said that the comments had been taken out of context, and other state channels said the government was not backing down from the mandatory hijab law.
Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, when asked about the abolishment of the morality police at a news conference in Belgrade, Serbia, where he was on an official visit, did not deny it, but said, “In Iran, everything is moving forward well in the framework of democracy and freedom.”
For his part, Mr. Montazeri said on Saturday that the judiciary would still enforce restrictions on “social behavior.” Days earlier, he said that the authorities were reviewing the law requiring women to cover their bodies in long, loose clothing and their hair with a head scarf or hijab, and would issue a decision within 15 days. But it was not clear whether the authorities were planning to relax the law.
Mr. Montazeri’s comments appeared to suggest the government was making its first major concession to the protest movement ignited by the death of Mahsa Amini, 22, in September in the custody of the morality police. The unrest has become one of the biggest challenges in decades to Iran’s system of authoritarian clerical rule.
Dear Readers, Good and credible news reportage is tedious task and requires huge finances.
We are soliciting your Noble support for as low as N1,000 your support would go a long way in assisting us to continue to guarantee our readers quality news.
Bank transfers can be made to:
Account Name: Harvest and Commercial
Bank: Sterling Bank
Account Number: 0078627735