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Iranian women unveiled: A shift in hijab enforcement?

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DW Farsi
December 29, 2025

Across Tehran, women of all ages are openly defying compulsory hijab rules — a sign the Islamic Republic may have been weakened by the 12-day war with Israel. In an exclusive interview from inside Iran, DW spoke with two young Iranian women.

In the aftermath of the 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, changes are visible on Iran's streets. The morality police have disappeared, warning text messages over hijab-rules have stopped and women in Tehran and beyond are walking around unveiled and dressed freely.

Their defiance comes three years after the death of Jina Mahsa Amini in police custody, which sparked the "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement in Iran and worldwide in 2022.

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