State department criticises Iranian ban on women

The US Department of State has attacked a decision by some Iranian universities to exclude women from major areas of university study, including some science and engineering courses.

In a media statement on 21 August, the department said that the decision by 36 Iranian universities to ban women from 77 critical fields of study represented a “significant regression” for women in Iran, who have outnumbered men in universities for over a decade. It would “diminish the potential of the Iranian workforce”, the statement said and called on the Iranian authorities to protect women’s rights.