By Ben Turner
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
TEHRAN, Iran – Iranian police have begun a new campaign against violations of the state enforced dress code. The police are arresting women whose headscarves do not fully cover their hair or if their clothes do not hide their figure. Men are also being stopped if their hairstyles are deemed inappropriate.
After Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution, a dress code was imposed requiring women to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothes to disguise the shape of their bodies. Violating these rules can result in lashes, fines or imprisonment.
Police have closed dozens of stores and hairdressers in an attempt to stop the selling of potentially inappropriate clothes and hairstyles. The crackdown is an annual attempt by the government to curb dress code violations at the beginning of the summer, when women are more likely to wear lighter clothes as the temperature rises.
For more information, please see:
Associated Press – Iranian Police Crack Down on Dress Code Violations – 16 June 2008
BBC – New Iranian Dress Code Crackdown – 16 June 2008
Reuters – Iran Police Start Wider Crackdown on Un-Islamic Dress – 16 June 2008
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BAGHDAD, Iraq – A female suicide bomber targeted soccer fans in a café north of Baghdad on June 14. The fans were celebrating Iraq’s World Cup qualifying win when the suicide bomber attacked.
The explosion injured 34 people including seven policemen. More injuries were prevented because a policeman spotted the woman holding a detonator and yelled for the crowd to disperse.
20 women have carried out suicide bombings in Iraq this year, many more than in previous years. Only eight women carried out suicide bombings in Iraq in all of 2007.
For more information, please see:
Associated Press – Female Suicide Bomber Strikes Soccer Fans; 34 Hurt – 14 June 2008
CNN – Female Suicide Bomber Strikes Soccer Fans in Iraq – 14 June 2008
International Herald Tribune – Iraq: Female Suicide Bomber Strikes Soccer Fans Near Café North of Baghdad, Wounding 34 – 14 June 2008
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TEHRAN, Iran – Japanese tourist Satoshi Nakamura, 23, was kidnapped while traveling in Iran last year. He was released on June 14, eight months after he had been taken hostage while traveling alone in Iran’s dangerous southeastern border with Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Iran’s Intelligence Minister Gholam Hossein Mohseini Ejehi was quoted as saying drug smugglers and armed bandits were responsible for the kidnapping. Iran has historically blamed kidnapping of foreigners on criminals and drug smugglers and foreigners are urged to be cautious when traveling there.
Japan’s Foreign Ministry said Nakamura was in good spirits when they spoke with him. No further details, including whether a ransom was paid, have been released.
For more information, please see:
International Herald Tribune – Kidnapped Japanese Tourist Freed in Iran After 8 Months – 15 June 2008
Reuters – Freed Japanese Arrives in Iran’s Capital – 15 June 2008
Associated Press – Japanese Tourist, Seized by Bandits in Iran, Freed – 14 June 2008
BBC – Japanese Captive Freed in Iran – 14 June 2008
