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Iranwire – A local Iranian official has branded the clash between a cleric and a woman at a local clinic in Central Iran’s Qom as a “planned bid to divide society,” and said four suspects linked to the incident have been arrested.
According to Ruhollah Muslimkhani, the deputy prosecutor of Qom province, “The case has been forwarded to the Ministry of Intelligence.”
In recent days, several government officials have voiced support for the cleric depicted in the viral video.
However, it seems to be the first instance where this incident has been characterized as “planned.”
Muslimkhani asserted that the detainees were “responsible for producing and sending the footage” to Iran International TV, “admitting to their intention of fostering societal discord.”
This development comes as the footage capturing a cleric confronting a woman holding her baby without wearing the mandatory hijab sparked widespread outrage among citizens and social media users.
The woman pleaded for the cleric to delete her video, but he refused, insisting that she comply with the hijab requirement.
Despite interventions from bystanders, the cleric persisted, leading to the woman experiencing a nervous breakdown and the cleric fleeing the scene, the video showed.
The current condition of the woman following the incident remains unknown.
Earlier, Hassan Gharib, the prosecutor of Qom, announced the initiation of legal proceedings in response to the video’s circulation, though he did not provide any details.
Gharib further disclosed that an order had been issued to “identify those responsible for sending the footage to the media.”
It has become mandatory for women in Iran to cover their hair with a headscarf and wear loose-fitting trousers under their coats while in public since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Iranian women who refuse to wear a head covering have been arrested and prosecuted amid a wave of protests sparked by the September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini in police custody after she was detained for allegedly wearing her headscarf “improperly.”
