An Iranian-American activist famous for her campaign against the Islamic Republic's mandatory headscarf, or hijab, for women has sued Iran in U.S. federal court.
Masih Alinejad's lawsuit filed on Monday seeks monetary damages, alleging that a government-led harassment campaign has targeted her and her family.
It also comes in the aftermath of nationwide protests in Iran over spiking gasoline prices that reportedly killed at least 208 people in November.
Even before that unrest, authorities in Iran had announced women faced a possible 10-year prison sentence for sending videos to Alinejad's “White Wednesday” civil disobedience campaign against the mandatory head covering.
Iran's mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
