Israel and Iran are once again not seeing eye to eye, but this time it's over something fairly unusual: Iran's clothing choices.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proved how out of touch he is with Iranian society when he intimated in his first interview with BBC Persian that their government restricts both their voting options and their sartorial decisions.
Netanyahu to #BBCPersian: "If people of #Iran were free they could wear jeans, listen to Western music & have free elections"
Bahman Kalbasi
@BahmanKalbasi
Netanyahu to #BBCPersian: "If people of #Iran were free they could wear jeans, listen to Western music & have free elections"
According to Netanyahu, Iranians are governed by a "cult" run by Supreme Leader and former Iran president Ali Hosseini Khamenei that restricts them from being truly free.
"If they had a free go, are you kidding, they'd toss out this regime, they'd go in blue jeans," Netanyahu said.
Though the prime minister was attempting to appeal to young people, hordes of perturbed Iranians responded to Netanyahu in mocking protest under the hashtags #Jeans and #IranJeans, where they proved they are well ahead of the leader on the pants front.
Hi @netanyahu welcome to my room شلخته هم خودتی #IranJeans
میلیک
@miiilik
Hi @netanyahu welcome to my room
شلخته هم خودتی #IranJeans
Photos poured in from all over the world of Iranians defending their country and jeans-wearing.
We do wear #jeans and we do listen to #western music... On your face dear @netanyahu
پگی
@PeeJameh
We do wear #jeans and we do listen to #western music... On your face dear @netanyahu
ما اینجا جتگل هم داریم نمیدونستی بدون #Jeans #IranJeans #FuckNetanyahu
DarGardan
@HapyMapy
ما اینجا جتگل هم داریم نمیدونستی بدون
#Jeans #IranJeans #FuckNetanyahu
.@netanyahu Here are my #Jeans and #Western music you idiot.
Sallar
@sallar
.@netanyahu Here are my #Jeans and #Western music you idiot.
وضعیت فعلی هشتگ‌های داغ روی نقشه #ایران #jeans #iranjeans #جین
Nima Akbarpour
@nima
وضعیت Ùعلی هشتگ‌های داغ روی نقشه #ایران #jeans #iranjeans #جین
Though many were at least mildly humored by Netanyahu's clearly clueless comments, some turned the conversation into a deeper political one regarding the leader's previous statements on Iran having nuclear weapons.
"If they get nuclear weapons this brutal regime will be immortal, like North Korea. It will go on repressing the people of Iran, who deserve better. They are a great people," Netanyahu said in the interview.
Ha ha Netanyahu doesn't know Iranians wear jeans. How does he know Iran is making nuclear bombs? #IranJeans
Ahmad Path
@apathoni
Ha ha Netanyahu doesn't know Iranians wear jeans. How does he know Iran is making nuclear bombs? #IranJeans
When @netanyahu doesn't know about what Iranians wear, how does he dare to talk about Iran's Nuclear Program? #IranJeans
Ali Shahri
@AliShahri
When @netanyahu doesn't know about what Iranians wear, how does he dare to talk about Iran's Nuclear Program? #IranJeans
#Netanyahu has no idea what ppl in #IRAN do in public; how he can be so sure he has accurate info of what's going on in secret N bunkers?
Mehrzad Kohanrouz
@Mehrzadbbc
#Netanyahu has no idea what ppl in #IRAN do in public; how he can be so sure he has accurate info of what's going on in secret N bunkers?
But not everyone was convinced that Netanyahu was entirely wrong — though those who questioned the protest were hastily reproached.
To the #Iran #jeans tweeters: Until there's a pic of a woman in jeans in Iran, you're only proving @netanyahu 's point.
Lahav Harkov
@LahavHarkov
To the #Iran #jeans tweeters: Until there's a pic of a woman in jeans in Iran, you're only proving @netanyahu 's point.
@LahavHarkov Would a denim niqab work? #compromise
Sharon-Beth
@sbethself
@LahavHarkov Would a denim niqab work? #compromise
@LahavHarkov @netanyahu How do you like that?
Bijan Daei
@bdaei
@LahavHarkov @netanyahu How do you like that?
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this item misidentified Amir Mizroch, an Israeli journalist.