IRGC in Gilan Reports Arrest of Members Distributing 'Misguided' Books in the Province

The head of the IRGC Intelligence in Gilan announced the arrest of members of a group distributing and publishing what they termed 'misguided books.' Mehdi Roudbaraki stated in an interview with the 'Tasnim' news agency on Thursday, March 6, that these individuals were 'establishing a fake company to create connections and attract customers.' According to this IRGC official, over three thousand copies of 'misguided books,' including 'The Satanic Verses' and books related to 'Baha'ism,' were discovered and confiscated from these individuals, whose number is unspecified. Books related to the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization and 'monarchists' were also among the seized materials. The head of the IRGC Intelligence in Gilan announced that the arrested individuals have been handed over to judicial authorities. For years, many books that are not allowed to be published in Iran have been made available to book enthusiasts through the internet or underground markets. The cost of obtaining these books in print is usually high, but despite this, the market for banned books in Iran has its specific clientele, and in recent years, the activities of street vendors in this field have expanded. Book censorship and the increase in publishing restrictions are among the main factors contributing to the development of the underground book market in Iran. According to a report published last year by the Book News Agency, Ibna, the average print run of books has decreased from over 11,300 copies in 1979 to just over 2,000 copies in 2013. The continuous decline in book print runs in Iran over the years has also been accompanied by rising prices, reducing the share of books in people's shopping baskets. In December of this year, the Iranian Writers' Association issued a statement once again protesting the government's cultural policies, describing them as a policy based on 'cultural extermination.' The statement read: 'What has happened to books so far is far more horrifying in terms of results than book burning. For years, the government has unleashed the fire of censorship on books, and although its flames are invisible, the ashes of its consequences can be clearly seen.'