News brief

Iran pauses stricter hijab law. Iranian authorities have paused the process of implementing a new, stricter law on women’s mandatory headscarf, or hijab, an official said on Dec. 16. The controversial law, which was approved by the parliament in September 2023, won’t be sent to the government to enact, at least temporarily. Many believe the law could have reignited the protests that engulfed the Islamic Republic after the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini. The law levies harsher punishments for women who refuse to wear the hijab and for businesses that serve them.

Have Iran’s hard-liners lost the battle over women’s headscarves?