Tehran: Two Iranian chess players participated in an international chess tournament without a headscarf amid ongoing anti-hijab protests in Iran.
Sara Khadem and Atousa Pourkashiyan, the latest athletes appeared in a competition without a headscarf since anti-hijab protests erupted in September due to the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.
Photos posted online showed Sara Khadem and Atousa Pourkashiyan playing on Tuesday in the Fide World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan, without complying with Iran’s mandatory dress code.
25-year-old Sara Khadem, also known as Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, has been a rising star in Iran’s chess world.
34-year-old Atousa Pourkashiyan, is a six-time Iranian champion chess player.
There were no comments from players on their appearance or posted pictures without headscarves on their social media accounts.
Protests in Iran continues
Iran has been rocked by sweeping protests since September 16, over the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of Iran’s morality police.
Her death has since ignited anger over several issues, including the restrictions imposed on personal freedoms and strict rules regarding women’s clothing, as well as the living and economic crisis that Iranians suffer from, not to mention the strict laws imposed by the regime and its political and religious composition in general.
It is noteworthy that since the beginning of the popular uprising against the regime of the Islamic Republic, dozens of artists, writers and journalists have been arrested in Iran.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana) announced that 508 protesters had been killed in the unrest as of Wednesday, December 28, including 69 children.
At least 18,666 people, including 667 students, were arrested in those protests that took place in 161 cities and towns and 144 universities.
Women also play a prominent role in it, as they remove the headscarf and in some cases burn it, while the protesters encouraged; Because of what they see as signs of support from male and female athletes from Iran.
On October 16, 33-year-old Elnaz Rekabi competed without a headscarf or hijab during the International Federation of Sport Climbing’s Asian Championships in Seoul.
In November, an Iranian archer said she did not notice her headscarf falling during an awards ceremony in Tehran, after a video showed her apparently letting her headscard fall, which was widely seen as a sign of support for the protesters.
In addition, several Iranian national teams refrained from chanting the national anthem, especially before Iran’s opening match in the FIFA World Cup. The Iranian football team chanted the anthem in its second and third games.
