In support of anti-government protests in Iran brought on by the murder of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in police detention, the foreign minister of Belgium and two other MPs had their hair cut short in the parliament.
Hadja Lahbib followed the lead of her deputy Darya Safai on Thursday and chopped off a lock of her hair.
After querying the minister about Belgium’s reaction to a crackdown on large protests within Iran, Safai, an Iranian-born lawmaker, took scissors to hers, drawing cheers from her fellow MPs.
She also had her hair cut by Goedele Liekens, a third lawmaker.
When the EU’s foreign ministers gather later this month, Lahbib, who was born in Belgium to Algerian parents, told the parliament that her government would push the EU to apply measures on those responsible for the crackdown.
Since Amini’s passing, Iran’s clerical leaders have been fighting to quell the most pervasive discontent in years, and protests have now expanded to many important international capitals, including London, Paris, Rome, and Madrid.
Abir Al-Sahlani, a Swedish MEP, chopped off a portion of her hair on Wednesday while speaking to the EU assembly.
