A Basij Official Reports the Arrest of 50 Girls and Boys at a 'Party' in Lavasan

The commander of the Basij in Lavasan, a district of Shemiranat County, stated on Friday, March 2, that 50 girls and boys were arrested at a 'mixed party' in Lavasan. According to Fars News Agency, Hojjatoleslam Navid Shokouhi said, 'In an intelligence operation by the forces of the 163rd district of the Al-Ghadir Basij in Lavasan, 400 bottles of alcoholic beverages were discovered and seized, and in this operation, 50 individuals were arrested.' This Basij official added, 'In this intelligence operation, after identifying and obtaining a judicial order, the officers entered the crime scene and discovered and seized advanced equipment, and the suspects were handed over to law enforcement authorities after a case was filed.' The police and judiciary in Iran frequently report on the arrests of participants in private parties, which they deem 'illegitimate' due to their 'mixed' nature. Previously, Colonel Zolfaqari Barfar, head of the Greater Tehran Moral Security Police, reported on December 22 that 140 individuals were arrested in a garden in Lavasan on Yalda Night. This police official stated that 140 individuals were arrested for dancing and consuming alcoholic beverages in a mixed gathering, and the location was sealed. In recent years, reports of arrests in various Iranian cities for participating in 'mixed parties' and 'consuming alcoholic beverages' have increased, with reports of several young people being arrested in different provinces. These arrests have even extended to family gatherings such as birthday and wedding celebrations, with dozens being arrested or released on bail or after paying fines. At least in 2017, reports emerged of the arrest of '230 girls and boys in two separate parties' in Tehran, '64 girls and boys at a pool party' near Isfahan, '55 women and men at a party in Kerman,' and '45 men and women at a mixed party in Qom.' Additionally, there have been reports of the sealing of venues hosting 'night parties' and the arrest of several individuals in this regard across various Iranian cities. Since the 1979 revolution and especially in recent years, the Iranian police have repeatedly raided parties, celebrations, and private events, arresting many and handing them over to judicial authorities. The extent of police intervention in private parties, which peaked shortly after the revolution in 1979 and had subsided for years, has increased again in the past two years following a directive from the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic to confront what he calls 'social harms.'