An Iranian cleric has claimed that women who dress "inappropriately" incite men to commit adultery, which in turn increases earthquakes.
Ayatollah Kazem Sedighi blamed women for natural disasters while addressing worshippers at Tehran Friday prayer, reformist newspaper Aftab-e Yazd reports.
Sedighi said: "Many women who dress inappropriately... cause youths to go astray, taint their chastity and incite extramarital sex in society, which increases earthquakes.
"Calamities are the result of people's deeds. We have no way but to conform to Islam to ward off dangers."
The law in the Islamic Republic of Iran requires women to cover themselves entirely, but many younger women reportedly pull back their scarves to show their hair and also wear tight coats.
Iran has been struck by several deadly earthquakes in recent years, with the country straddling a number of fault lines.