FOR years, the West has promoted the rights of Iranian women while having a privileged definition of freedom, framing it around the right to dress. However, they have been specifically targeting the hijab. For Muslim women, however, the idea of freedom goes much beyond such a notion.

It is not about being able to dress a certain way, but it is about being able to have knowledge and education. It is about having opportunities similar to men, and not having their credibility questioned, and, most importantly, it is about going everywhere and anywhere in the world without the fear of discrimination or harassment as a Muslim woman.

Today, too many in the West consider the American and Israeli campaign against Iran as a struggle for the rights of the women of Iran. But when have we seen a war that promotes freedom, especially for women? How hypocritical it is of the West to enjoy this in the name of freedom. This campaign resulted in the bombing of a girls’ school in Iran, which killed 165 innocent girls. What about their rights?

This goes to show that the women of Iran should be free to define their freedom themselves. As such, the narratives of the Western privileged class are not merely opinions; these are dangerous opinions that can lead to devastating loss of life.

Mariam Shakeel
Lahore

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2026