An investigation has been launched into a lone attacker, who filmed themselves ripping the headscarves off of Muslim women as they walked through West London. The attacks, which were later uploaded to social media, have been viewed at least 1 million times and appear to be entirely unprovoked. 

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In the video, the attacker, is only known by their voice and hands, both of which seem feminine (although their gender and identity remain unconfirmed). The attacker quickly walks up behind the unsuspecting female victims, whose heads are wrapped in accordance with their Islamic faith, before violently ripping their headscarves off. As the attacker removes the women's headscarves, the attacker can be heard shouting aggressively in a foreign language.

As seen in the video, passive bystanders all appear to do nothing, despite clearly being shocked by the attackers actions, nothing audible is said. 

Little is currently known about the attacker at present, however a woman who posted the videos propelling them to go viral, was in full support of the vulgar criminal act. Bahar Mahroo, a woman of Iranian origin, posted the video to her X/Twitter with the following bizarre sentiment:

Just as you take democracy away from us in Iran and force us to wear headscarves, since we have democracy in this country, we'll pull off those very headscarves from you. 

The comment refers to widespread political instability and liberal dissent in Iran and many protests by Iranian diasporans voicing their favour of a more liberal regime. Particularly one which allows women greater religious and social freedoms, demands that have become stronger since the 2022 custodial death of Mahsa Amini, who was initially detained for wearing her hijab improperly. 

Iran's political tensions were heightened in May by the helicopter death of their 63-year-old President Ebrahim Raisi. Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian was also killed in the crash. Now, Iranians are rushing to the polls to elect their new President in what many Iranian diasporans and natives are calling a ‘sham election’. The elections have been dubbed a charade due to the stronghold Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei retains on power, which many believe makes the hope of true democracy redundant. Nonetheless, the leading presidential candidate Masoud Pezeshkian, is viewed by many as a reformists, highlighting the country's desire for change. 

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Bahar herself was recently the victim of senseless violence in London, which left her near unconscious on the floor in another widely circulated video. During her social media rant, she compared her own attack to the ripping off of headscarves, stating: 

When I was assaulted on the street by extremist Muslims, who kicked me in the face until I lost my front tooth, all Muslims remained silent. Now that I have utilized a video of a woman that was broadcast in the media, the same silent individuals are threatening me with death.

As a consequence of Bahar's comments and circulation of the video, many took to social media to accuse her of being the attacker seen pulling off headscarves. However Bahar vehemently denied these accusations, adding that CCTV would no doubt affirm her innocence. 

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A spokesperson for the #MetropolitanPolice said: 'There is no place for this sort of behaviour in London…. 

We are in contact with one of the victims and an investigation is under way to establish the full circumstances and deal with any offences.

Anyone who has witnessed an incident of this type is asked to call police on 101 or post @MetCC, ref 3273/29jun'

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