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Iranian Government Bows, Abolishes “Morality Police” After Weeks Of Protest

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Iran has scrapped its controversial morality police units after more than two months of protests.

The country witnessed its biggest uprising in decades after the death of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman from the north-western city of Saqez, who was said to have been arrested by the morality police on September 13 for not wearing a proper hijab.

The 22-year-old Amini died three days after her arrest and detention, and during her funeral, protests broke out.

She was said to have fallen into a coma shortly after collapsing at a detention centre before she died.

The police denied reports that the deceased was mistreated and said she suffered a “sudden heart failure” but her family insisted she was in good health.

Her death sparked criticisms from the international community, including the United Nations and other human rights organisations.

Some of the protests saw women burning their headscarves in a defiant act of resistance against the Islamic country’s strict dress code.

The Iranian government took measures, including restricting access to Whatsapp and Instagram and other internet services to control the protests.

Two weeks ago, in a surprise move, Iran players refused to sing their national anthem before the start of their World Cup match against England at the Khalifa International Stadium.

In solidarity with the players, the fans also booed their anthem.

In a statement on Saturday, Mohammad Montazeri, Iran’s attorney-general, said the morality police would be abolished as they “have nothing to do with the judiciary,” the ISNA news agency quoted him as saying.

“Of course, the judiciary continues to monitor behavioural actions,” he added.

However, it is unclear whether the force will be set up again in a different context or under a different name.

About “Morality Police”

“Gasht-e-Ershad,” which translates as “guidance patrols” and is widely known as the “morality police,” were a unit of Iran’s police force established under former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

They were tasked with enforcing the laws on Islamic dress codes in public and began patrolling the streets in 2006.

According to Iranian law, all women above puberty must wear a head covering and “decent” clothing in public, although the exact age is not clearly defined.

There are also no clear guidelines or details on what types of clothing qualify as inappropriate, leaving room for personal interpretation and sparking accusations that the “morality” enforcers inexcusably detain women.

Following Amini’s death, hundreds of women have begun to speak up against compulsory hijab-wearing online. Even some conservative figures, including members of parliament, have been seen criticising the law and the police force, saying that it has had a negative impact on public attitudes toward the hijab and religion in general.

BIG STORY

FCT People Will Show Wike During LG Council Poll — Senator Kingibe [VIDEO]

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The Senator stated that the FCT minister does not understand the people’s needs and is failing to address them.

The Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory, Ireti Kingibe, says residents of the capital will take action against FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, in the upcoming local government election in Abuja.

Kingibe, while appearing on Channels Television’s Political Paradigm, said Wike is out of touch with the people’s needs and has not been meeting them.

“The truth is that the people of the FCT resent Wike,” she said. “They are not happy with his attitude and his failure to meet their needs.”

She noted that the forthcoming local council elections would serve as a test of the minister’s performance.

“The people will show him who owns the FCT during the council polls,” she added.

Watch VIDEO HERE

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BIG STORY

Atiku May Not Have Been Destined To Become Nigeria’s President — Daniel Bwala

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Daniel Bwala, a presidential aide, has said that his former principal and ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar may not have been destined to become Nigeria’s President.

“There is my former principal who believes that he is going to win,” Bwala said during Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Monday, dismissing the chances of Atiku and other opposition coalition leaders like Peter Obi and Rotimi Amaechi to defeat President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

“In all honesty, I have expressed my opinion that it may never have been destined by God for him to be a president in Nigeria because he has done everything he needs to do to be president and he did not win the presidency.

“2023 was the biggest opportunity that my former principal Atiku Abubakar had. He will never have that kind of privilege again,” he said.

Interestingly, Bwala served as Atiku’s campaign spokesperson during the 2023 election but later switched his allegiance to Tinubu.

Opposition has no alternative policies

Opposition leaders recently agreed to use the African Democratic Party as the platform for their coalition to remove Tinubu, whom they accused of leading the country backward.

However, Bwala dismissed their efforts, saying they have failed to provide alternative policies that could convince Nigerians to support them.

“What I still find intriguing is that this coalition of internally displaced politicians have not been able to summon the courage and come up with alternative facts, alternative policies or alternative programmes.

“Throughout the interview you had with Peter Obi, what I find is that he has not been able to counter or to disagree in the real sense of the word with the policies that we are implementing,” he said.

Coalition will scatter in six months

Bwala further downplayed the threat posed by the opposition coalition to Tinubu’s presidency, predicting that the coalition would not last beyond six months.

He stated that internal disputes over who would emerge as the presidential candidate under the ADC would break up the coalition, ultimately benefiting Tinubu in 2027.

“All this fantasy of coalition, we all know that once there is a phenomenon like that we are going to have a good two to three weeks of all these romanticizing of ‘we have ideas, we can do this’.

“But one of them, his name is Datti (Baba-Ahmed) already sensed the danger that is ahead for them and he said that the problem of theis coalition will be who will be the president because right now, I’m quoting him, ‘everybody wants to be the president’.

“After one month when they sit down, I am telling you on my own honour, in the next six months, that coalition thing will not even be a conversation, they will scatter,” Bwala added.

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BIG STORY

Inside Lagos: Man Burnt With Hot Oil For Stealing In Mushin Market

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An unidentified man is in critical condition after a mob attacked him with hot oil for allegedly stealing groundnut oil at a market near the Alakara Police Station in the Mushin area of Lagos State.

Report has it that the incident occurred on Friday.

According to The Punch, a resident under anonymity on Monday said that the man pretended to be a customer, took the item from a stall, and was caught in the act.

Angered by the theft, the mob reportedly heated some of the groundnut oil he was accused of stealing and poured it on his back.

“He pretended to be a customer, and while the owner of the shop was busy attending to others, he lifted a bottle of groundnut oil and left. He did not know he was sighted by another trader. That was how he was approached and caught with the product. He was stripped naked and beaten by the mob, who then decided to heat the groundnut oil and poured it on his back while he was lying down,” the source said.

The suspect was said to have been left unconscious with severe burns and abandoned near the market.

A resident, Omoluabi Ifeoluwa, who raised the alarm about the suspect’s condition, revealed that the man was found on Sunday lying in a gutter close to the police without receiving medical assistance.

Ifeoluwa, who shared the information on the community WhatsApp group, stated that he received a distress call and contacted health officials and the police.

He wrote, “On receiving a distress call, I was informed that a seemingly lifeless body had been lying in a gutter near Alakara Police Station along Agege Motor Road for over two days without attention. Upon verification of this disturbing report, I promptly contacted the following officials for immediate action: Medical Officer of Health, Mushin Local Government. Supervisor for Health, Mushin Local Government and Divisional Police Officer, Alakara Police Station

Following this, I arranged for an ambulance through the Lagos State Emergency Services, and we proceeded swiftly to the location. On arrival, we found a man in an extremely critical and unhygienic condition.” According to eyewitnesses, he was allegedly caught attempting to steal groundnut oil. As punishment, the oil was reportedly poured on him, and he was left in that state.”

Ifeoluwa explained that after cleaning him up, the general hospital where he was taken refused to admit him.

“We were advised to transfer him to Gbagada General Hospital for further care. Unfortunately, due to a lack of further support, medical acceptance, or guidance, I was unable to continue with the process. With no clear path forward and without institutional assistance, I was left with no choice but to let him go,” he added.

When reached for comments, the Divisional Police Officer, Enyinna Nwankudu, stated that the officers had made efforts to retrieve the man from where he was found.

He said, “When we saw him, we contacted the local government officials and health workers who came to remove him from inside the drainage. He was initially thought to be dead, but he was not. He has been taken care of.”

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