CNN —An Iranian chess player, who competed in an international tournament without wearing a hijab, has been granted Spanish nationality, Spain’s Minister of Justice announced on Tuesday. Sara Khadem, also known as Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, competed in the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in December 2022. Khadem was one of a number of sportswomen to appear at a sporting event without a hijab since anti-government protests erupted in September last year, sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini. Spain’s Minister of Justice, Pilar Llop, said that there were “exceptional circumstances” in Khadem’s situation, announcing that the country’s Council of Ministers granted her “Spanish nationality through a naturalization letter.”The chess player met with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in January, who said that he was “inspired” by Khadem. “How much I have learned today from a woman who inspires me, the Women’s Chess Grandmaster Sara Khadem,” Sánchez tweeted.

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Persons: Sara Khadem, Khademalsharieh, Khadem, Mahsa, Pilar Llop, Pedro Sánchez, ” Sánchez, ” Organizations: CNN, Justice, FIDE, Reuters, country’s, Ministers, Spanish Locations: Iranian, Spanish, Almaty, Kazakhstan, Iran, Spain