Iran has deployed female special forces to its streets for the first time in a desperate bid to quell mass protests that erupted last week over a young woman dying after a beating at the hands of morality police.

As human rights groups said the death toll from the unrest had risen to 31, the elite commando unit was dispatched to patrol streets with photographers to catch protest ringleaders.

The death of Mahsa Amini, who was allegedly beaten by morality police for improper dress before she fell into a coma, has led to unprecedented demonstrations across the country. Failing to wear a headscarf has been illegal in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

In a video released on Thursday, the female commando unit's leader Colonel Heydari confirmed the female troops were being deployed at public protests for the first time.

When asked by reporters if the presence of female commandos would only fuel the unrest, he responded: "The arrival of our women's police force is to bring peace. I'm sorry to see other women in these protests carrying out illegal actions that are inconsistent with social rules."

He was then confronted over Iranian forces attacking female demonstrators, and insisted: "There is a way to protest. There is a law and the Iranian state has clear rules on what is allowed. The temporary protest that we see here is an illegal act."

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