Protest Gathering of Citizens Against Mosque Construction in Qeytarieh Park; 'The Barriers and Walls of the Workshop' Have Not Been Removed

A group of people in Tehran gathered on Monday, April 1, coinciding with the Iranian tradition of Sizdah Bedar, also known as 'Nature Day', in Qeytarieh Park to protest the plan to build a mosque in this recreational area. According to reports, citizens protested the municipality's plan to cut down ancient trees in this park in northern Tehran for the construction of the mosque. Shiva Arasteh, an architect and architectural researcher, published a visual report of this protest, emphasizing that 'the locals have gathered to prevent the construction of the mosque.' She stated that 'there is no news from the cultural heritage unit,' adding, 'the barriers have not been removed; only police officers are present, and the situation remains unchanged. The barriers and walls of the workshop are still in place, and not a single one has been taken down.' In recent days, in response to the Tehran municipality's action to build a mosque in Qeytarieh Park, an online campaign was launched to prevent the destruction of this park, addressed to the head of the judiciary, the president, and the head of the Administrative Justice Court of the Islamic Republic, which received significant support in cyberspace. In the petition of this campaign, Tehran is described as 'a densely populated city with high density' that 'suffers from a shortage of parks and green spaces.' The petition emphasizes that in light of the severe air pollution in Tehran, the municipality has 'not only taken no effective action' to increase green space but has 'widely engaged in the uprooting of trees in various parts of Tehran, including Zafaranieh Park, the National Botanical Garden, Chitgar Park, and Saadabad Palace,' and 'now intends to destroy the historical Qeytarieh Park despite the presence of ancient trees.' Despite the increasing protests against the mosque construction in Qeytarieh Park, Alireza Zakani, the mayor of Tehran, emphasized the implementation of this plan, stating that a mosque will be built in all parks of the capital. Meanwhile, Nasser Amani, a member of the Tehran City Council, deemed this action by the municipality as 'illegal,' stating that 'any construction in parks, except for essential services, is prohibited, and changing their usage without the approval of legal authorities is seriously prohibited.'