TEHRAN -- Iran’s First Vice President Muhammad Reza Aref on Sunday instructed the country’s education and health ministries to facilitate the admission of Azerbaijani students affected by Baku’s school hijab restrictions, following an earlier invitation from Iran’s science minister for hijab-wearing Azerbaijani girls to study at Iranian universities.
In a message posted on X, Aref praised the Science Ministry for welcoming Azerbaijani girls who wear the hijab and have been deprived of educational opportunities in their country. 
He called on the ministers of health and education, as well as the head of Islamic Azad University, to take the necessary steps to enable Azerbaijani school and university students to continue their education.
The directive follows remarks by Iran’s Minister of Science, Research and Technology Hussein Simayi Sarraf who said in a video message earlier this month that Iranian universities were open to Azerbaijani girls facing restrictions over the hijab. 
“As the Minister of Science of the Islamic Republic of Iran, I declare that the doors of Iranian universities are open to girls from the Republic of Azerbaijan to pursue their studies,” Simayi said.
He added that Iran could provide a welcoming environment for girls forced to choose between their religious convictions and their right to education.
Last month, Azerbaijan’s cabinet of ministers adopted a resolution prohibiting clothing that allegedly violates uniform school dress code requirements and contradicts the principle of secular education. 
Earlier this month, the Baku City Education Department announced inspections to check compliance. Although the ban does not explicitly mention the hijab, videos circulated online indicate it applies specifically to headscarves.
The measure has sparked protests, with teachers saying some schools demanded they remove their hijabs or resign. It has also drawn international condemnation, with social media users denouncing it as religious persecution of the country’s Muslim-majority population.
Iranian parliament member Muhammadreza Mohseni Sani also wrote to Sahiba Gafarova, speaker of Azerbaijan’s National Assembly, expressing concern over reports that girls were prevented from attending school because of their headscarves, citing international human rights instruments and calling for a transparent investigation.
Iran’s embassy in Baku has rejected allegations linking Tehran to the protests, describing them as baseless.