Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Calls for Overhaul of the Cultural System, Is It Caused by Protests?

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (Wikimedia Commons/Khamei.ir)

JAKARTA - Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Tuesday called for a "revolutionary reconstruction of the country's cultural system", state media reported, as nationwide protests continued to put pressure on the authorities.

"It is important to revolutionize the cultural structure of the country. The supreme council must observe cultural weaknesses in various areas of the country," Khamenei said in his meeting with the country's cultural council, Reuters reported on December 7.

Earlier, Attorney General Mohammad Jafar Montazeri said Thursday Iran's parliament and judiciary were reviewing the country's mandatory headscarf law, according to pro-reform outlet Entekhab, citing CNN.

Top Iranian officials have repeatedly said Tehran would not change the Islamic Republic's mandatory headscarf policy, which requires women to dress modestly and wear headscarves, despite 11 weeks of protests against strict Islamic regulations.

Iran has been rocked by unrest since the September 16 death of Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in the custody of the moral police, following her arrest for dressing inappropriately in the country.

The demonstrations have been one of the strongest challenges to the Tehran government since the 1979 revolution.

Meanwhile, the HRANA activist news agency said 470 protesters had been killed as of Saturday, including 64 minors. It said 18.210 demonstrators were arrested and 61 members of the security forces were killed.