When Iran's Supreme Leader bans women from cycling, Iran's women cycle.
In a small triumph of common sense and social media over religious law, women across Iran are taking to their bikes in defiance of a fatwa - a non-binding religious rule - on female cycling issued by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
In the increasingly restrictive Islamic country, it had been understood that women could cycle as long as religious concerns were respected. Despite being frowned upon by religious clerics, more women had been taking to the streets on two wheels as part of a grass-roots movement to encourage Iranians to reduce pollution by leaving their cars at home.
But when asked recently, Khamenei reportedly said women were not allowed to cycle in public or in the presence of strangers, explaining that the practice of females riding a bike "exposes society to corruption" and "contravenes women's chastity," reports the Independent.
Under the hashtag #IranianWomenLoveCycling, women are campaigning against the new rule, with photos, videos and supportive comments flooding in to Facebook page, My Stealthy Freedom.
One cyclist, a 25-year-old woman, posted a video of herself cycling the streets of Shiraz, Iran. It has been viewed over 21,000 times since being posted on Wednesday morning, Australian time.
Another video of a mother and daughter duo from Tehran cycling in Kish Island, Iran, is accompanied by their calls for tolerance.
"We immediately rented 2 bicycles to say we're not giving up cycling", the 25-year-old daughter says of hearing of the fatwa. "It's our absolute right and we're not going to give up."
"Women are the main agents of change and as they push for equality we see greater push back from the Islamic Republic", she said, adding that the fatwa has largely been ridiculed on social media.
Cyclists around the world have since lent their support to women in Iran, with some supporters pointing out that women were once banned from race cycling in Holland and other European countries.
While the activity does not have a defined penalty in Iran's legal code, reports the Independent, modesty laws are often used against women who cycle and who are deemed not to be adhering to "modest clothing" guidelines.
Despite a lack of clarity around the rule, those who break the fatwa may be at risk of arrest by police after authorities threatened to prosecute women who took part in a bicycle marathon in Marivan, Iran, in July.
A June report by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office found that Iran's human rights record had worsened, with women given far fewer rights than men. A decision over two incendiary bills that were proposed to the Iranian parliament in 2015 is expected by the end of the year. The new laws around family planning and population growth, as backed by Khamenei, have been criticised for reducing women to little more than "baby-making machines".