Muslims with tattoo regrets flock to a free removal service during Ramadan

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Teguh Islean Septura groans in pain as each staccato rat-a-tat-tat of the laser fires an intense beam at the elaborate tattoos on his arm. But the former musician's determination to “repent” in the holy month of Ramadan is enough to keep him going.

The 30-year-old guitarist got his back, arms and legs tattooed to “look cool” when he was performing in a band. But these days Septura has a newfound zeal for Islam, including the conviction that Muslims should not alter the body that God gave them.

“As humans, sometimes we make mistakes. Now I want to improve myself by moving closer to God,” Seputra said, as a health worker aimed the white laser wand at Septura’s skin, blasting the red, green and black pigments with its penetrating light. “God gave me clean skin and I ruined it, that’s what I regret now."

Septura is among a growing number of people in Indonesia's capital who have signed up for free tattoo removal services offered by Amil Zakat National Agency, an Islamic charity organization, during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to “repent."

Launched in 2019, the tattoo removal program is now held every Ramadan, a month of fasting, increased worship, religious reflection and good deeds. Some 700 people have signed up for the services this year, and in total nearly 3,000 people have taken part.

“We want to pave the way for people who want to hijrah (to move closer to God), including those who want to remove their tattoos” said Mohammad Asep Wahyudi, a coordinator of the event. He added that many people cannot afford to remove their tattoos or know where and how they can do so safely.

Laser removal, which takes repeated treatment and may not be completely successful, could cost thousands of dollars for tattoos as extensive as Septura's.

Tattooing remains strongly associated with gangs and criminality in some Asian cultures. In addition to the religious prohibitions in Muslim-majority Indonesia, ideas about tattoos also reveal oppressive attitudes toward women, who if tattooed can be labeled as promiscuous or disreputable and not worth marrying.

Sri Indrayati, 52, said she tattooed the name of her first daughter on her hand shortly after she gave birth to her at the age of 22. She said she regretted it when her two grandchildren kept asking her to erase it because it looked like dirty, thick marker writing.

“When I take my grandson to school, (the children) whisper to each other: ‘look at that grandma, she has a tattoo!” she said.

Another woman, Evalia Zadora, got a tattoo of a large star on her back and the words "Hope, Love and Rock & Roll” on her upper chest as a teen to gain acceptance into a gang. She wants to remove them now to move closer to God and out of consideration for her family.

“Bad image (against people with tattoos) is not a big deal for me, but it affected my husband and son,” said Zadora, 36. “They are not comfortable with my tattoos and I respect their feelings, so I want to remove it.

Evalia Zadora leaves after having her tattoo removed during Ramadan in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A Muslim displays his hand after having tattoos on his fingers removed in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A Muslim takes the service of a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A Muslim takes the service of a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A Muslim takes the service of a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A Muslim takes the service of a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

Sri Indrayati, 52, left, recovers after removing the tattoo of the name of her first daughter that she got shortly after she gave birth to her at the age of 22, in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A woman take the service of a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

Teguh Islean Septura has his tattoo removed during Ramadan in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A Muslim has his tattoo removed through service provided by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent." in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

A man has his blood pressure checked before having his tattoo removed in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

People wait to take the service for free tattoo removal offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

People take the service of a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

Sri Indrayati, 52, removes the tattoo of the name of her first daughter that she got shortly after she gave birth to her at the age of 22, in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)