According to the Iranian Student Union Council, subsequent to recent nationwide protests, 435 students have been expelled. In a statement issued on Tuesday, April 11th, the council stated, “A significant number of students have been issued suspension and expulsion rulings via an unlawful process.”
Iran’s student movement gained momentum last year amid the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests following the death in custody of Mahsa Amini. Universities were the scene of large anti-regime demonstrations.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reports that 637 students from 144 universities nationwide have been arrested since mid-September 2022.
Sources inside Iran have also reported the number of detained students is over 700.
Last week, the Ministry of Education said institutions that fall under its aegis will no longer offer academic and other services to students who do not abide by hijab and other Islamic dress codes. The ministry statement read: “All universities and institutions of higher education that fall under the aegis of the Ministry of Sciences, Research and Technology will not be obliged to offer educational, welfare and other services to those students who do not abide by the laws and regulations of the universities in this regard.”
The “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement has galvanized more and more, women and university students to renounce the compulsory hijab laws, but regime authorities continue to aggressively punish and enforce Islamic dress code.
