BAKU — Iran’s embassy in Baku on Thursday rejected allegations linking Tehran to protests in Azerbaijan over a hijab ban in schools, calling the claims “baseless and spiteful” and intended to sow discord between the two neighbors.
In a press statement responding to an October 13 report by Azerbaijan’s APA news agency on hijab restrictions, the embassy expressed regret over “baseless, biased, provocative and spiteful” allegations against Iran.
The APA report claimed the hijab ban in schools has become a tool of interference and leveled what the embassy described as unfounded accusations against Iran.
The embassy reiterated that Iran’s policy is based on mutual respect, good neighborliness and respect for the national sovereignty of other countries. 
It rejected attempts “to attribute any gathering, protest, or public dissatisfaction in the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Islamic Republic of Iran” as “baseless and devoid of truth.”
It added that spreading false information and fabricating links between current developments and Iran serve the interests of the two countries’ enemies who seek to sow division among Muslims and weaken Muslim countries, warning such moves would prepare the ground for “unnecessary misunderstandings” in bilateral relations.
The embassy reaffirmed Tehran’s commitment to expanding friendly relations with Azerbaijan on the basis of mutual respect and stressed the need to avoid baseless allegations.
The protests erupted after Azerbaijan’s government amended regulations governing uniforms in state schools in September, prohibiting additional clothing that conflicts with the prescribed uniform or secular principles of education, without explicitly mentioning the hijab. Earlier this month, the Baku City Education Department announced inspections to check compliance.
Local media reported pupils demonstrated outside schools on Monday and boycotted lessons in solidarity with girls denied entry for wearing Islamic headscarves. Videos circulated online indicate the ban applies specifically to headscarves, despite the official wording not mentioning them directly.