Iran’s Minister of Science, Research and Technology has invited girls and women from Azerbaijan to study at Iranian universities after Baku barred students and teachers wearing hijabs from schools.

In a video message on Thursday, Hossein Simaei-Sarraf said, “As Iran’s Minister of Science, Research and Technology, I announce that the doors of Iranian universities are open to girls from Azerbaijan.”

“We can be good hosts to the faithful daughters of the Holy Prophet (PBUH), who are forced to abandon their Islamic hijab in order to exercise their right to education,” the minister stressed.

His invitation comes as the Azerbaijani government amended regulations governing uniforms in state schools in September, prohibiting additional clothing that conflicts with the prescribed uniform or the secular principles of education.

Although the ban does not explicitly mention the hijab, videos circulated online indicate that it applies specifically to headscarves.

'War against Muslim women': Netizens blast headscarf ban in Azerbaijan schools

Azerbaijan’s ban on hijab-wearing students and teachers has sparked global condemnation, with social media users calling it religious persecution of Muslims.

Earlier this month, the Baku City Education Department announced inspections to check whether students and teachers comply with the measure, which has already been condemned by social media users as the religious persecution of the country's Muslim-majority population.

The ban has sparked protests, with teachers saying that some schools were demanding that they remove their hijabs or resign.