A student at the Applied Arts University has been arrested by Iran’s morality patrol, referred to as an Ershad Patrol.
The Kaleme opposition website reports that campus security tried to prevent the Ershad Patrol from returning to the campus after the student’s arrest, and a serious conflict arose between the two groups. The Ershad Patrol reportedly resorted to pepper spray in order to gain access to the campus.
The report indicates that students are now collecting signatures for a petition to be forwarded to the Minister of Education, denouncing the actions of the Ershad Partol.
Kaleme calls the Ershad Patrol’s violent reaction unprecedented, and one of the more violent officers involved in the incident has been identified as Hamid Ebrahimi.
The Ershad Patrol, a branch of the Islamic Republic police force, patrols streets and public places and makes arrests for “improper outfits or hijab.”