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Tuesday, January 23, 2018

“Girl Of Enghelab Street”: Hijab-Waving Girl Is Missing

(Adelle Nazarian’s article from The BREITBART NEWS on 23 January 2018.)

A lawyer in Iran expressed concern over the fate of the “Girl of Enghelab Street,” a woman arrested for removing her white headscarf and waving it in the air in a sign of protest to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s compulsory hijab law.

The woman’s act of bravery and defiance took place on one of Tehran’s busiest streets on December 27, just one day prior to the start of the national uprising against the Iranian government, as part of a movement known as “White Wednesday.” She quickly became a symbol of hope for the protesters.

“What I am certain about is that this lady has been arrested,” Nasrin Sotoudeh, a renowned human rights lawyer, said of the missing activist to the AFP. “The witnesses on the scene who saw her being taken away and even accompanied her to the police station gave me this information. I have no contact with her family.”

Sotoudeh reportedly went to Enghelab Street, where the woman carried out her defiant act, to discover more about her whereabouts. She told AFP that the only information she was able to gather was that the woman is 31 years old and has a 19-month-old baby.

The incident took place on the same day that the Iranian regime announced it was relaxing its punishment for women who do not adhere to the strict Islamic dress code. Police reportedly said that women who wear makeup and loosened headscarves will no longer face arrest, but will be sent to “Islamic values” classes.

However, women who repeatedly break the rules will ultimately be arrested. Despite the announced change, it is possible the regime will change its stance again.

Sotoudeh told the AFP that in the past the regime’s authorities have taken women to a holding place and beaten them or even rape them before they receive legal representation. Some girls were never seen again, obviously died in captivity.

“Before even being tried by legal authorities, [women] are taken to a place called ‘Gasht-e Ershad’ [Guidance Patrol], where they can be harshly beaten up,” she said. “Whether a case is opened for them or not is not important. The illegal punishment they have had to bear has always been much more than what is foreseen in the law.”


"The regime wants you to think that either there are no protests, or that the protests are solely about the economy. But I am not protesting the economy. Women are protesting the repressive Islamist laws. I am sick of Hijab, Sharia law and Sharia police. Women are sick of the Sharia police monitoring them constantly for what they wear, what they say, what they drink, where they go, and what kind of relationships they have". – Leila, a young Iranian woman.

What now is the fate of these women? The history of the Islamist Republic of Iran shows us that arrested women are faced with atrocities such as rape, torture or execution. Some die in detention surreptitiously.

Feminists claim to be champions of women rights around the world. They argue that "universality" is a key component of their cause. Perhaps it is worthwhile, though, to examine their nice slogans against reality.

Women took to the street recently in the front lines of protests in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The demands of the women were clear: Remove Sharia law, eliminate the obligatory hijab, improve the rights of women, and not to treat women as slaves and second-class citizens. Simple.

Many women demonstrated their resistance by bravely removing their hijab, thereby violating the Islamist law of the land. One photograph that has become a symbol of the protests on social media, is of an Iranian woman raising her fist in the air while she goes walks through tear gas.

The video and pictures of an unidentified woman in Iran removing her hijab, placing it on a stick and waving it, which circulated widely on social media, have become a symbol of the recent protests in the Islamic Republic. The woman was reportedly arrested shortly after her act of defiance.


In a video, a woman protesting in the streets is seen saying, "You raised your fists and ruined our lives. Now we raise our fists. Be men, join us. I, as a woman, will stand in front and protect you. Come represent your country."

Another woman, in a crime punishable by death, courageously chanted against the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Her chants encouraged and prompted men behind her to chant also. These women can be labeled true heroes.

During the protests, in Iran, however, Western feminist groups did not even issue a simple statement of support for these extraordinary women, let alone take any concrete actions to help them.

The Iranian regime brutally cracked down on the protesters. It killed more than 20 people and injured many more. The regime also arrested more than 3,700 people, including young girls and women. Again, there was not one statement from Western so-called feminists condemning the Iranian regime.

Leila, a young Iranian woman interviewed by the author via Skype, pointed out that, "The regime wants you to think that either there are no protests, or that the protest are solely about the economy. But I am not protesting the economy. Women are protesting the repressive Islamist laws. I am sick of Hijab, Sharia law and Sharia police. Women are sick of the Sharia police monitoring them constantly for what they wear, what they say, what they drink, where they go, and what kind of relationships they have".

What now is the fate of these women? The history of the Islamist Republic of Iran shows us that arrested women are faced with atrocities such as rape, torture or execution. Some die in detention surreptitiously.


In the Sharia court, ambiguous charges will be brought against them as you are reading this, charges such as "Moharebeh" or "Waging war against God", a capital offense in Iran; "insulting Islam"; "being corrupt on earth"; "endangering the national security"; "insulting the Supreme Leader", or "insulting Allah (God)" for defying the rules.

With no due or fair process, the detainees are also denied access to lawyers. The Islamist judiciary of Iran has already announced that some of the detainees face the death penalty.

Where are the feminists and mainstream leftist media? These women need support right now. They are facing severe retribution. If you want to see true feminists, these women are the real promoters of women's rights: they are risking their lives. They are not just uttering nice slogans in a nice, safe environment.

No one is asking Western feminists to be as brave as these women. Cannot they just simply issue a statement of support from behind their comfortable desks? Can they really keep on turning such a blind eye on what they claim is their important cause?

(Blogger’s Notes: The left-leaning western feminists like Women’s March in US already are accepting hijab-wearing Islamist-Muslim bitches like Linda Sarsour - Already FGMed - as their leaders and thus they will not fight for millions and millions of Muslim women and girls who hate wearing mandatory hijab and forced Female Genital Mutilations.)