Iranian Police Arrest 5 Teen Girls for Their International Women’s Day TikTok

Iranian authorities show no signs of stopping their punishment of the young people at the heart of ongoing demonstrations in the country. As Vice World News reported, five Iranian girls were arrested last week for making a TikTok of themselves dancing to Rema and Gomez’s song, “Clam Down,” which went viral earlier this month.

The teens, who remain unidentified, posted the video earlier this month in celebration of International Women’s Day. The video shows the young women, who are believed to be from Ekbatan in western Tehran, with their hair down, dancing without hijabs in front of an apartment complex. According to a Farsi-language media outlet, the police detained the group for two days and forced them to apologize for their actions—not only were they made to call it a “mistake,” but they also had to promise not to do anything like it ever again. A video of the apology—in which they are seen wearing full-length pants, long sleeve shirts, and head coverings—was then posted on their dance instructor’s Instagram page.

The girls’ actions are in direct defiance of the country’s hijab law that requires women’s heads to be covered at all times while in public. In Iran, women are also forbidden from performing any kind of public dance. Public protests—many of which have been led by Iran’s youth—have swept the nation since September, when morality police arrested a 22-year-old Kurdish woman named Mahsa Amini for wearing her hijab “incorrectly.” She later died in their custody. Since the demonstrations first began, the country’s Revolutionary Court has issued death sentences for many involved.