Leaked images purportedly showing top Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Rostam Qasemi holidaying with his girlfriend in Malaysia have emerged on social media leading to massive outrage.
The leak comes as security forces continue to crack down on anti-hijab protests.
The purported images show Qasemi and his unveiled girlfriend getting pictures clicked together.
According to Iran International, the photos were clicked near Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur in 2011, two years after the death of Qasemi’s wife.
Notably, Qasemi is serving as the transport minister of Iran. He also played the main role in financing the Revolutionary Guards’ foreign unit Quds, Iran International reported.
Iran protests
Protests erupted in Iran erupted after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on 16 September. She died in a hospital following her arrest by the controversial morality police which is responsible for upholding Iran’s mandatory hijab law.
Security forces have struggled to contain the protests, which started with women taking to the streets and burning their hijab headscarves and which have evolved into a broader campaign to end the Islamic republic founded in 1979.