The head of the Security Department brutalized students of Tehran University of Art, some of whom are in critical condition
Following the students of Tehran University of Art’s protest against the obligation for female students to wear the Maghna’eh, a black cloth covering their head, forehead, chin, and chest, the head of the university’s security subjected the protesting students to harsh beatings, as a result of which some students were injured.
On June 14, 2023, the National Students Councils announced that around 50 students of Tehran University of Art, starting from 5 pm on Thursday, June 15, 2023, gathered at the university’s Bagh-e Melli campus to protest against the obligation for female students to wear the Maghna’eh.
Despite the threats from the security department and gathering of plainclothes agents outside the university, the students continued their sit-in protest.
Agents of the security department did not allow the protesting students to use the restroom facilities or drink water. Additionally, the plainclothes agents outside the university prevented the delivery of food and water to the students.
In the evening, Hamzeh Borzouii, the head of the security department, threatened the students that he would open the university gates to the plainclothes agents.
Around 2:30 am on Thursday, June 15, 2023, Borzouii started beating the protesting students of Tehran University of Art. Some of the students were injured, and several are in critical condition.
The National Students Councils reported on Thursday, June 15, that despite the ongoing pressure and threats from the security department, the students are still inside the university premises and are not allowed to leave.
After the nationwide protests in 2022, the pressure on universities to enforce the mandatory Hijab has intensified. The scale of pressure on students is such that those who do not comply with the mandatory Hijab or participate in any form of protest are quickly summoned, facing penalties such as expulsion and suspension from education for actively opposing the mandatory Hijab.
