Iran detains 5 over mixed-sex teenage skateboard gathering

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian state media is reporting that authorities have detained five people accused of organizing a skateboarding event where dozens of teenagers mixed freely and girls didn’t wear headscarves. A video of the “Go Skateboarding Day” held off a boulevard in the southern city of Shiraz went viral on social media, prompting anger among conservative religious authorities in a country where the wearing of a Muslim hijab is mandatory for all women and teenage girls. The Friday report by state TV said the provincial judiciary was looking into the event, while the state-run IRNA news agency reported that a rally to oppose Western-style gatherings of teenagers would be held after Friday prayers in Shiraz.