Iranian Cleric Creeps on Breastfeeding Mother: Gets Instant Karma

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A video of a fight between a young woman and an Islamic cleric in Iran went viral on social media after she caught the cleric filming her holding her baby while her hijab was loose in a clinic.

The viral footage obtained by news outlet Iran International from the clinic’s CCTV camera made rounds on Iranian social media on March 9th, showing a tense encounter between a young mother and an Islamic cleric in the religious city of Qom.

The footage showed the young woman seated against the wall in a secluded area, cradling her sick child in her arms. Her hijab then slipped down over her shoulders. In the background, the Islamic cleric covertly used his mobile device to take photos or videos of the woman, presumably to document her violation of the Islamic Republic’s mandatory hijab laws.

Realizing what the cleric was doing, the woman swiftly passes her baby to someone nearby and confronts the cleric, demanding that he check his phone to delete the recordings or pictures. The cleric refuses, leading to a brawl and escalating the situation, as other women in the hospital also intervene and ask the cleric to delete the videos or photos he took.

The cleric fled the scene, and the clinic staff took the woman away after having a nervous fit. The identities of both the cleric and the woman were not known. 

Hassan Gharib, the prosecutor of the religious city of Qom, announced on March 10th that an order to identify and arrest the person who leaked the CCTV footage to Iran International has been issued. He also clarified that no arrests were made in connection to the incident.

 “In any case, we will decisively, fairly, and speedily investigate the matter,” Gharib said.

Fars News Agency, the news outlet linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), wrote on March 10th that “it is necessary to point out that the error of the person who sent the video to anti-revolutionary media should not be overlooked,” adding that “this calls for intelligence work and action that will teach [such people] a lesson.” 

Sakineh-Sadat Pad, a special aide to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, said she has seen the video and described the actions of both the woman and the cleric as "aggressive" and "disagreeable." While she acknowledged the woman’s concern for her sick child, Pad did not openly condemn the cleric’s action and emphasized the need to have the issue investigated further.

The incident came after the Iranian parliament passed a new law allowing financial institutions to deduct money from the accounts of women who don’t adhere to the regime’s mandatory hijab laws.

Most hardline and pro-regime social media accounts defended the cleric’s actions and even blamed the woman for failing to follow the mandatory hijab law and then confronting the cleric who took photos and videos of her, arguing that the cleric’s intention was to follow his religious and political duty.

However, some social media users pointed at the video as evidence of the wide opposition to the mandatory hijab laws that the regime was unable to enforce them even in Qom, which is Iran’s second religious city and a seat for most of its seminaries.

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