🔶 Continued closure of cafes in Iran; shutdown of three cafes in Ardabil and arrest of 16

On Tuesday, 20 Mordad, the deputy prosecutor of Ardabil announced that three cafés in this city were sealed off due to “running gambling, violating norms, promoting corruption, and not observing Islamic decorum.” According to Hossein Salarī, 16 people were arrested in this regard.

The judicial official told the IRNA news agency that in the coming days the prosecutor’s office will take action against clothing sellers whose products “would offend public modesty.”

Meanwhile, the human rights website “Hengaw” (HRAANA) also reported on Tuesday that a café-restaurant called “Bell” in Tehran’s Vanak district had been sealed off. As written by Hengaw, no details have been provided so far regarding the reason for the closure of this venue.

In recent weeks, the process of sealing off cafés in various Iranian cities has intensified, and multiple reports have been published about the shutdown of these businesses due to “not observing decorum” or related matters concerning compulsory hijab.