Iranian woman who protested headscarf law gets 20-year sentence

An Iranian woman who in December removed her obligatory Islamic headscarf has said she has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Shapark Shajarizadeh posted on her personal website that she had been jailed for "opposing the compulsory hijab" and “waving a white flag of peace in the street".

There was no immediate announcement about the claims from Iranian officials.

Police in Iran arrested 29 people in February for removing their headscarves as part of a campaign known as "White Wednesdays".

Nasrin Sotoudeh, a prominent human rights lawyer who represented Shajarizadeh and other women, was arrested last month.

Shajarizadeh, 42, was released on bail in late April, but her current whereabouts is unknown.

In Iran, women showing their hair in public face penalties ranging from a $25 fine to prison time.

Iran recently detained a teenage girl who posted dance videos on Instagram that attracted tens of thousands of followers.

State TV broadcast a video on Friday in which Maedeh Hojabri, an 18-year-old gymnast, acknowledged breaking moral norms, while insisting that was not her intention. 

Iran's judiciary and security forces are dominated by hard-liners who launch periodic crackdowns on behaviour they deem "un-Islamic".