ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - From Toronto to Erbil, people gathered over the weekend in a vast show of support for the protests in Iran, sparked by the death of a young Kurdish woman while in police detention.
Mahsa (Zhina) Amini was arrested by the so-called morality police in Tehran for wearing “improper” hijab and her death has triggered public anger with thousands of people flocking to the streets in protests that spread from Iran’s Kurdish region (Rojhelat) to the rest of the country.
Videos of women taking off their headscarves, burning them, and cutting their hair in solidarity with Amini’s death have been circulating on social media.
Shortly after Iran’s 1979 revolution, the hijab was declared compulsory and women who defied the Islamic dress code or refused to strictly follow it were denied their rights. Offenders against Iran’s sharia law and hijab rules often face fines or arrest.
.jpg "People demonstrate against the Iranian regime during a protest at Mel Lastman Square in Toronto, Ontario, September 24, 2022. Photo: Geoff Robin/AFP")
.jpg "Demonstrators rally outside the White House during a protest to condemn the murder of Mahsa Amini in Washington, DC, on September 24, 2022. Photo: Stefani Reynolds/AFP")
.jpg "Eli, an Iranian refugee woman living in Greece shouts after she cuts her hair during a demonstration by Iranians living in Greece in central Athens on September 24, 2022. Photo: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP")
.jpg "People protest in Sergels Torg in Stockholm, Sweden on September 24, 2022. Photo: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP")
