TEHRAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad described FIFA as “colonialists” on Tuesday for a headscarf ban in football that affect its women’s team.
Mustafa Musleh Zadeh, Iran’s ambassador to Jordan, went further by saying the ban was “inhumane” and “politically motivated.”
The remarks by Ahmadinejad were the highest since the team forfeited a 2012 Olympic qualifier against Jordan last Friday because it wouldn’t play without the hijabs.
“Theses are the dictators and colonialists who want to impose their lifestyle on others,” Ahmadinejad said in a seasonal news conference.
The Iran president said he’d assigned Ali Saeedlu, the head of Iran’s physical education, to pursue the case.
“We will deal with those who carried out this ugly job,” said Ahmadinejad. “We follow definite rights of our girls.”
Zadeh said Iran would complain to the Asian Football Federation.
FIFA said the ban on the Islamic scarf covering a women’s neck was for safety reasons.
The ambassador called FIFA’s ban “extremism,” similar to Afghanistan’s Taliban restrictions on women in sports.
FIFA banned the hijab in 2007 and has extended the safety rule to include neck warmers. At the 2010 Youth Olympics, Iran’s girls protected their modesty by covering their hair with specially designed caps. (AP)