Iran president vows to ensure morality police don’t ‘bother’ women

TEHRAN: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian vowed on Monday to ensure the morality police would no longer “bother” women, in remarks to the media on the second anniversary of Mahsa Amini´s death in custody.

Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, died in police custody on September 16, 2022, days after the morality police arrested her in Tehran for an alleged breach of the Islamic republic´s strict dress code for women.

Her death triggered months-long protests nationwide, with hundreds of people killed, including dozens of security personnel. Thousands of demonstrators were arrested. “The morality police were not supposed to confront (women). I will follow up so they don´t bother” them, Pezeshkian said during his first press conference in Iran since he took office in July. Pezeshkian replaced the ultraconservative Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May.