Modesty guards or modesty patrols either request or force citizens, mostly women, to dress modestly, depending on the country and the location. The definition of

modesty Modesty, sometimes known as demureness, is a mode of dress and deportment which intends to avoid the encouraging of sexual attraction in others. The word "modesty" comes from the Latin word ''wikt:modestus, modestus'' which means "keeping within ...

is different in each location. In

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

their body and hair has to be covered. Iranian women are also jailed if their clothes are revealing while making a video posted online.

Islamic religious police

Official

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...

vice squad police agencies which enforce religious observance and public morality on behalf of national or regional authorities based on its interpretation of

sharia Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...

Afghan Taliban

The Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice is the state agency in charge of implementing Islamic law in the

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

as defined by the ruling

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

Iranian

Guidance Patrol (Persian: گشت ارشاد, Gašt-e Eršād) is the main Islamic religious police, or vice squad in the Law Enforcement Force of

Islamic Republic of Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, established in 2005. They impose

Islamic dress code Islamic clothing is clothing that is interpreted as being in accordance with the teachings of Islam. Muslims wear a wide variety of clothing, which is influenced not only by religious considerations, but also by practical, cultural, social, and ...

s and norms of conduct in public, particularly regarding the

hijab In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...

of women. The Iranian force has even arrested a number of women over videos that were posted on

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

. In 2018 they arrested 17-year-old gymnast Maedeh Hojabri, over a video of her dancing. The State TV in Iran aired her forced "confession". In 2016 Tehran's police sent around 7,000 undercover officers to lookout for those who do not follow conservative Islamic modes of dress and behavior. They are called the Gashte Ershad, the "guidance patrol," and they have broad powers to scold and arrest people for failing to meet the modesty test.

Palestinian (Hamas)

The Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice is a group which is part of the police forces of the

Hamas Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...

' ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' government in the

Palestinian territory The Palestinian territories are the two regions of the former British Mandate for Palestine that have been militarily occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967, namely: the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip. The ...

of the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...

Saudi

The Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice is a Saudi government religious authority charged with implementing the Islamic doctrine of hisbah.

Israeli

In Haredi communities

In Israel, the term mishmeret tzniyut (Hebrew: משמרת צניעות; also ''tzniyut'' patrol, modesty squad, chastity squad) refers to an unofficial

vigilante Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without Right, legal authority. A vigilante (from Spanish, Italian and Portuguese “vigilante”, which means "sentinel" or "watcher") is a pers ...

gang which acts to enforce a code of modesty among the Haredi (Jewish Ultra-Orthodox) public through violence and intimidation. The conduct of these gangs is illegal under Israeli law. They can be intimidating and even violent. They have torched stores for selling certain electronic equipment. They sometimes hurl stones at women who do not dress according to their strict dress code and have even broken into a woman's house and beat her up, because they did not approve of her behavior. In 2006, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said; "The ''modesty police'' are not organized, just rogue enforcers carrying out isolated attacks." But Israel's Justice Ministry used the term ''modesty patrols'' in an indictment against a man who assaulted a woman in Jerusalem.

Modesty guidelines at government-sponsored events

According to an article in ''The Independent'' in 2016, " Israel's Culture Ministry is to introduce new rules about how modestly performers should dress at government-sponsored events. 'Festivals and events funded by public money will respect the general public, which includes different communities,' a Culture Ministry spokesperson said. The announcement comes after a singer at a government-backed beach concert near

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

said she was ordered off stage for wearing a bikini top."

References

{{reflist Modesty in Judaism Religious law