The Iranian actress was sentenced to two years in prison for not wearing a hijab

An Iranian court sentenced actress Afsane Bayegan to two years in prison for not wearing a hijab. The 61-year-old actress came to the screening without a headscarf, but in a hat, and then posted photos from the event on social networks.

The court sentenced her to a five-year suspended sentence. In addition, he is prohibited from using the Internet for two years. She will be required to visit a psychologist weekly to combat “anti-family behavior.”

Afsane Bayegan is one of the brightest stars of Iranian cinema in the 1960s and 70s. She participated in the Miss Iran beauty contest in 1976, two years before the Islamic revolution in the country.

In modern Iran, there is a law requiring all women to cover their hair and neck. Its observance is monitored by the moral police, and they are also identified by recordings from street video cameras.

• Street patrolling by the “morality police” in the country was suspended after months of protests that erupted after the death in September 2022 of 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amina. She died after being detained on charges of improperly wearing a hijab. Amina’s family claimed that she was beaten to death by members of the security forces. Protests with slogans against police violence were severely suppressed. During these actions, at least 500 people died, and tens of thousands were detained. Several participants of the protests were executed.
• In July, the Iranian authorities announced that they were resuming the work of the moral police.