Tehran Prosecutor Issues New Warning to Artists and Athletes About Attending Parties

Tehran's prosecutor, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, has warned artists and athletes attending 'mixed parties' that the low cost of punishment for participating in such gatherings is why they continue to occur in Iran. According to Mehr News Agency, on Tuesday, January 7, he referred to the arrest of several artists and athletes at various parties, stating that the prosecutor's office is exercising 'restraint' in disclosing the names of those arrested due to 'limitations imposed by existing laws.' Last week, some conservative media outlets, such as Fars News Agency, reported a police raid on a party in Tehran, resulting in the arrest of 25 individuals, including 'an actor and a writer of comedy programs.' In late December, the Tehran prosecutor had also reported the arrest of 120 men and women at a café in Tehran. The Mehr News report indicates that Mr. Jafari Dolatabadi mentioned these two incidents on Tuesday and stated that 'the reason for committing such crimes is the low cost of punishment.' This statement comes despite some cases where attendees at mixed parties faced immediate punishment by flogging. For instance, judicial officials in Qazvin announced earlier this June that 35 young men and women were arrested for attending a party and were immediately punished with 99 lashes. In recent months, Iranian media have reported multiple instances of mass arrests of participants in mixed parties. In one case, the judiciary-affiliated news agency 'Mizan' reported the arrest of seven prominent actors at a 'night party' in early May. The crackdown on parties in Tehran even led to the arrest of the Japanese ambassador to Iran. In this context, 20 young men and women were arrested at a 'night party' in Shiraz, 34 men and women were detained at a 'night party' in Kerman, police in Rasht arrested 30 individuals at a 'mixed celebration,' and 23 young men and women were arrested in connection with a 'mixed party' in Dezful. Recently, '40 single men and women' were arrested at a party in Urmia, and 40 young men and women were detained at a 'night party' in the village of Ziarat in Golestan province.