FILE PHOTO: Cast member Taraneh Alidoosti poses on the red carpet ahead of the screening for the film "Forushande" (The Salesman) in competition at the 69th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 21, 2016. REUTERS/Yves Herman
Top Iranian actress Taraneh Alidoosti has posted a picture of herself on Instagram without a headscarf to express support for nationwide anti-government demonstrations, another sign that the protest movement is gaining support from all layers of society.
Best-known for her role in "The Salesman", which won an Academy Award in 2017, the pro-reform artist held up a sign in the Instagram post which read "Woman, Life, Freedom" in Kurdish, a popular slogan in the demonstrations.
Protests sparked by the Sept. 16 death of Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini after her arrest by the morality police for not wearing "appropriate attire" are posing one of the biggest challenges to Iran's clerical rulers since the 1979 revolution.
An image obtained from social media shows Taraneh Alidoosti posing with her hair uncovered to express support for nationwide anti-government protests, in this image released on November 9, 2022. Taraneh Alidoosti via Instagram/via REUTERS
Alidoosti, who is not a Kurd, wrote a poem in her Instagram post. "Your final absence, the migration of singing birds, is not the end of this rebellion," it read.
Alidoosti has posted many Instagram posts critical of the clerical establishment in the past.
Since the start of protests, at least five female Iranian actresses have posted pictures of themselves without the compulsory hijab in solidarity with the demonstrations in which women have played a leading role.
Taraneh Alidoosti, Donya Madani, Khazar Masoumi and Mina Akbari pose with their hair uncovered to express support for nationwide anti-government protests, in a combination of file images obtained from social media on November 9, 2022. Taraneh Alidoosti via Instagram/Donya Madani via Instagram/Khazar Masoumi via Instagram/Mina Akbari via Instagram/via REUTERS
Iranian officials, who have blamed Amini's death on pre-existing medical problems, say the unrest has been fomented by foreign enemies including the United States, and accuse armed separatists of perpetrating violence.
(Writing by Michael Georgy; editing by Alison Williams and Mark Heinrich)
An image obtained from social media shows Donya Madani posing with her hair uncovered to express support for nationwide anti-government protests, in this image released on November 9, 2022. Donya Madani via Instagram/via REUTERS An image obtained from social media shows Khazar Masoumi posing with her hair uncovered to express support for nationwide anti-government protests, in this image released on November 9, 2022. Khazar Masoumi via Instagram/via REUTERS FILE PHOTO: The 75th Cannes Film Festival - News conference for the film "Leila's Brothers" in competition - Cannes, France, May 26, 2022. Cast member Taraneh Alidoosti attends. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
