A popular Iranian actress has been handed a two-year suspended prison sentence, a travel ban and has been ordered to attend weekly therapy sessions for failing to wear the hijab in public.
Afsaneh Bayegan was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for five years, for wearing a hat in public and violating Iran's hijab law, media affiliated to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps reported on Wednesday.
The actress must also attend weekly therapy sessions to treat an "anti-family personality," a Tehran court ruled, and is banned from using social media or leaving the country for two years.
Ms Bayegan is one of several prominent entertainment figures who has joined millions of other Iranian women in flouting rules imposed on them by Iranian authorities, who have made it illegal for females to sing or ride a bike in public, dress as they please and leave the country without their husbands' consent, among other restrictions.
She was arrested after attending a movie premiere without a hijab and posting photos on social media, and has also expressed support for protesters who were gunned down in their hundreds last year.
The ruling comes as Tehran steps up surveillance of women ahead of the anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death in morality police custody last September, which prompted nationwide anti-regime protests that have continued in some parts of the country.
Although morality police and plain-clothed officers have been active in recent months, authorities have stepped up patrols to catch women without hijab or the long clothing required under Iranian law since the Islamic Revolution.
Women have recently told The National of pregnant relatives being hit in the stomach and held in prison by morality police officers.
Meanwhile, the trial of an Iranian activist jailed has been postponed after she reportedly refused to wear a hijab to her court hearing.
Sepideh Qolani was re-arrested in March, just hours after her release from the notorious Evin prison, for chanting against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
She was due to appear at a court session on Wednesday, in which she had decided to represent herself, local media reported.
The session was postponed as Ms Qolani refused to wear a hijab, the semi-official Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Paris%20Agreement
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Small Victories: The True Story of Faith No More by Adrian Harte
Jawbone Press
