By Abida Kahlun
Bureau Chief Helsinki
SNN News Finland
Footage of Iranian women in black uniforms performing backflips, high throws and weapon sequences has gone viral again, reviving interest in Iran’s female ninja school a martial arts academy that has trained women in ninjutsu since 1989.
Around 25,000 women are estimated to have taken part over the years, although published figures differ widely and SNN Finland could not independently verify any total.
What the footage shows
The clips circulating this week show women in black training uniforms carrying out acrobatic stunts, handstands, high tosses and staff and baton sequences, along with work with wooden practice swords. The setting is an outdoor training area in front of a city building, with Iranian flags visible in the background.
The women perform in the loose black clothing associated with ninjutsu practice, with head coverings. The material is a demonstration of skill rather than a military exercise.
Where the school comes from
Ninjutsu was introduced to Iran in 1989 and has since been taught under the country’s national martial arts federation. The women who train in it are known as kunoichi — the Japanese term for a female ninja.
Iranian participants have competed in international martial arts events, and the ninjutsu programme has been presented as part of the broader expansion of women’s sport in the country. Training covers sword skills, acrobatics and traditional Japanese martial arts, together with fitness and self-defence work.
The numbers are disputed
Claims about how many women have trained are inconsistent. Reports published as early as 2012 described between roughly 3,000 and 3,500 women training in ninjutsu in Iran at that time. More recent social media posts about the school claim that more than 30,000 women have graduated since 1989.
SNN Finland has not been able to verify either figure. Iranian martial arts authorities have not published a current register of participants, and the totals circulating online are attributed to the school and to accounts amplifying the viral clips rather than to audited records.
What it is not
The school is frequently described online as an “army of female ninjas” or a military unit. That framing is not supported. The training is a sport and martial arts programme run within Iran’s federation structure, and the women shown are athletes and students, not members of the armed forces.
Iranian women also serve in limited roles in the country’s security forces, but those are separate institutions with separate training. Presenting the ninjutsu academy as a combat formation misrepresents what the footage shows.
Key facts
- Ninjutsu has been taught to women in Iran since 1989 under the national martial arts federation.
- Participants are known as kunoichi, the Japanese term for a female ninja.
- Training includes sword skills, acrobatics and traditional Japanese martial arts.
- Estimates of how many women have trained range from a few thousand to claims of more than 30,000; none is independently verified.
- It is a sports and martial arts academy, not a military or paramilitary force.
- Ninja
FAQs
Is Iran’s ninja school a military unit?
No. It operates as a martial arts programme within Iran’s sports federation structure. The athletes shown in the viral clips are not members of the armed forces.
How many women have trained there?
Figures differ. Early reports suggested around 3,000 to 3,500 trainees; recent viral posts claim more than 30,000 graduates. SNN Finland could not verify either number.
What do the women learn?
Sword work, acrobatics, throws and stunts, staff and baton sequences, and traditional Japanese martial arts techniques.
Why is the story viral again?
New clips of a demonstration began circulating this week and were widely reshared, as has happened with earlier footage of the same school.
Why the story keeps returning
Videos of the school have resurfaced periodically for more than a decade, and each time they draw heavy international attention. Part of the appeal is the contrast between the popular image of the ninja and the reality of a women’s sports club operating inside Iran.
For Iranian women, martial arts have also been a route to international competition and to a measure of independence, at a time when their participation in public life is tightly regulated.
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