Azerbaijan's school dress-code amendment restricts the hijab without naming it

Al Jazeera reports that Azerbaijan approved an amendment in September to its state school uniform rules that does not name the headscarf but bars clothing the government says violates the principle of secularism; clothing reflecting national history may be worn at celebrations with approval from the Pedagogical Council. State media says the aim is a unified dress code. In early October some schools turned away students and teachers who wore the hijab, student boycotts were reported at at least two schools, and demonstrators gathered outside Azerbaijan's consulate in Istanbul. Jailed journalist Polad Aslanov began a hunger strike over the rules. President Ilham Aliyev warned indirectly against outside interference; no policy change has been announced. About 96 percent of Azerbaijanis identify as Muslim, and the constitution is both secular and guarantees religious freedom. Why it matters: it shows how restrictions can be drafted through administrative rules rather than statute, which shapes where and how affected communities can respond.

This is a QeRN summary by Ahmed Qerni. Read the original at Al Jazeera: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/12/azerbaijans-school-hijab-ban-whats-behind-it-and-whats-next.