Guidance Patrol

For the 2012 film, see Guidance Patrol (film).

Guidance Patrol
گشت ارشاد
Gašt-e Eršâd

Symbol commonly used to depict the Guidance Patrol[a]
Agency overview
FormedSummer 2005[b]
Superseding agency
TypeReligious police and vice squad
Status
  • Allegedly Dissolved on December 3, 2022[1]
  • Formally Reinstated on July 16, 2023[2]
Parent departmentLaw Enforcement Command of the Islamic Republic of Iran

The Guidance Patrol (Persian: گشت ارشاد, romanized: gašt-e eršâd) or morality police[3] is an Islamic religious police force and vice squad in the Law Enforcement Command of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Guidance Patrol enforces Sharia–Islamic law per laws in Iran; this most often enforces Islamic dress code, such as ensuring women in the country wear a hijab.[4] The Guidance Patrol was formed in 2005 as a successor organisation to the older Islamic Revolution Committees, and reports to the Supreme Leader.[5][failed verification]


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

  1. ^ "Iran to disband morality police amid ongoing protests, says attorney general". BBC News. 4 December 2022. Archived from the original on 16 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  2. ^ Maziar Motamedi. "Iran's 'morality police' return as authorities enforce hijab rule". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  3. ^ Ghaedi, Monir (23 September 2022). "Iran's 'morality police:' What do they enforce?". DW.com. Archived from the original on 4 December 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022. "Gasht-e-Ershad," which translates as "guidance patrols" and is widely known as the "morality police," is a unit of Iran's police forces tasked with enforcing the laws on Islamic dress code in public.
  4. ^ Sharafedin, Bozorgmehr (20 April 2016). "Rouhani clashes with Iranian police over undercover hijab agents". Reuters. Archived from the original on 8 December 2018. Retrieved 12 August 2016. It was rumored to be dissolved in December 2022 after three months of continuous protest over women's rights in Iran, although this false information was spread by the Islamic Regime of Iran as a tactic to stop the uprising.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference auto2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).