The Iranian Public Prosecutor, Mohammad Jaafar Montazeri, suspended the work of the “morality police by the very place in which it was established,” pointing out that the agency has nothing to do with the judiciary.
This announcement comes in the wake of the protests that took place in the country over the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, after she was arrested by the police last September.
Montazeri said, in statements reported by local media, that the work of the morality police was suspended “by the very place in which it was established,” without specifying the party responsible for closing this agency.
His remarks come in light of the absence of the morality police from the streets of Tehran and other major cities in recent months, which has raised speculation about their dissolution.
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Montazeri stressed that the morality police “has nothing to do” with the judiciary, adding that the Iranian judiciary “continues to monitor behavioral behavior at the level of society.”
The Iranian official’s statements came in response to a question about the reason for the “suspension” of the morality police, which became the talk of the media and made headlines after the death of Mahsa Amini after her arrest on the grounds of “wearing the veil in an inappropriate manner.”
Although Iranian officials, including President Ebrahim Raisi, have repeatedly rejected calls to disband the morality police, Montazeri’s statements indicate that the agency chose to go into hibernation after the incident of Amini’s death, which was followed by widespread violent protests.
Since last September 16, protests have continued across Iran following the death of Amini, 22, 3 days after she was arrested by the “morality police” concerned with monitoring women’s dress code.
The incident sparked widespread public anger in the political and media circles in Iran, amid conflicting accounts of the causes of death.
Western countries also imposed sanctions on Iran after the incident, claiming “Tehran’s systematic violations of human rights.”
