Elika Ashoori cuts her hair on Lorraine in support of Iranian woman amid ongoing protests

British-Iranian actress cut her hair live on Lorraine in support of Iranian woman amid ongoing protests since the murder of Mahsa Amini.

Elika Ashoori, 35, who’s father Anoosheh Ashoori endured five years in the squalor of Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, appeared on Lorraine to discuss the protests in Iran and what the west can do to help. 

During the interview Elika took our a scissors and chopped chunks off her hair in a powerful moment to show she is behind the woman of Iran fighting for basic human rights. 

She said: ‘People need to stop normalising pain and suffering in the middle east.’ 

She is the latest in a string of high profile women to chop their hair in solidarity, with Oscar-winning French actresses Marion Cotillard and Juliette Binoche taking to social media to share their powerful protests. 

Oscar-winning actors Marion Cotillard (right) and Juliette Binoche (left), as well as other French stars of screen and music, filmed themselves chopping off locks of their hair in a video posted Wednesday in support of protesters in Iran

British-French actress and singer Charlotte Gainsbourg (right) is filmed cutting the hair of her mother, singer Jane Birkin

Protests has been sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, 22, who died in custody on September 16 after she was arrested for breaching the country’s strict dress code.

Speaking about the events, Elika said: ‘This all started with the murder of one girl who was showing a few strands of hair and was beaten by the morality police but it soon escalated into nation wide protests and progressed into woman asking for the removal of compulsory hijab which has been implemented for four decades in Iran.

‘From there it had taken another shape and has become a nationwide revolution led by woman this is the first female led revolution that we have seen in our time that the demographic of age is between 16 and 22.’

She continued: ‘They force woman from the age of nine to wear a covering because that’s the age by Iran law that a girl becomes seductive.’ 

During the interview Elika took our a scissors and chopped chunks off her hair in a powerful moment to show she is behind the woman of Iran fighting for basic human rights

Elika, 35, who’s father is Anoosheh Ashoori who endured five years in the squalor of Tehran’s notorious Evin jail, appeared on Lorraine to discuss the protests in Iran and what the west can do to help

‘I grew up in Iran I had to cover my hair, I left when I was 16, if you look at a nine year old and you are seduced by her, the sickness is in your mind. 

‘They murder them they hide their body’s, then they would stage a murder with their body’s to distract from the way they killed them.

Asking what the media can do to Lorraine said: ‘We want to help, we do want to help, what can we do?’

The protests were sparked by an arrest carried out by the morality police that resulted in the death of a young woman while she was in custody. Mahsa Amini (pictured), 22, was pronounced dead days after Tehran’s notorious police force detained the Iranian Kurd last month for allegedly breaching the Islamic republic’s strict dress code for women

Elika said: ‘There are three factors, people media and politicians, the media to stop misrepresenting the news as we have seen with the New York Times article that has put these protests down as economical protests which is so wrong.’

She went onto say she wants politicians to put sanctions on Iran just like they did on Russia during the Ukraine war. 

Taking out a scissors in a powerful moment she went onto say: ‘I am going to cut my hair as well to show we are all behind you.’

‘And I just want to say this one is what the UK and US governments need to do, they need to stop and cut everything. ‘

Swedish lawmaker Abir Al-Sahlani cuts her hair as she delivers a speech during EU debate on Iran protests at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France October 4

Holding up a piece of her hair in her hand she said: ‘Just like that, just like that.’

Elika’s father, civil engineer Anoosheh Ashoori, 67, was on the same flight back to freedom as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, after enduring five years in the squalor of Tehran’s notorious Evin jail, where she was also incarcerated; both of them on trumped-up charges of spying which they have always strenuously denied. 

Anoosheh recently run the London marathon in his Iranian prison outfit with a ‘Woman Life Freedom’ sign to dedicate his run to the woman of Iran.

It comes after Oscar-winning actors Marion Cotillard and Juliette Binoche as well as other French stars of screen and music, filmed themselves chopping off locks of their hair in a video posted Wednesday in support of protesters in Iran. 

Elika’s father, civil engineer Anoosheh Ashoori, 67, was on the same flight back to freedom as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, after enduring five years in the squalor of Tehran’s notorious Evin jail, where she was also incarcerated; both of them on trumped-up charges of spying which they have always strenuously denied. (Above, on the plane home from Iran)

Their video was released on Instagram and hash-tagged HairForFreedom.

Protests in Iran and other countries including Turkey, Lebanon and France have seen women cutting off their hair in a show of solidarity.  

‘For Freedom,’ said Binoche as she snipped off a huge handful of her auburn hair and held it up to the camera. Binoche was joined by other French A-list actresses and singers including Cotillard and Isabelle Adjani in cutting their hair, with a Farsi rendition of Italian protest song ‘Bella ciao’ behind the video montage.

Gainsbourg was filmed cutting the hair of her mother, Birkin.

‘Mahsa Amini was abused by the morality police until death followed. All she stood accused of was wearing her veil in an inappropriate manner. She died for having a few locks of her hair exposed,’ read a text on the Instagram video posted by soutienfemmesiran (Support for Women of Iran).

The post has been widely relayed on other social media, including Facebook and Twitter.

A post on the video read: ‘These women, these men are asking for our support. Their courage and their dignity obliges us. We have decided to respond to the appeal made to us by cutting – us too – some of these locks.’

Swedish lawmaker Abir Al-Sahlani joined the actresses in cutting her hair as she delivered a speech during an European Union debate on Iran on Tuesday.  

Protests across the country following the death of Amini have led to brutal crackdowns. With information from the country hard to come by as Iran cracks down on the internet, figures of how many people have been killed so far vary.

At least 92 protesters have been killed so far in the unrest, according to Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR). Amnesty International has confirmed 53 deaths, while Fars news agency put the death toll at ‘around 60’ last week.