The Prosecutor's Office of Sabzevar Cancels Salar Aghili's Concert

The music concert of Salar Aghili in Sabzevar has been canceled, and the head of the cultural department of this city has stated that he has no information regarding the reason for the cancellation. IRNA reported that Mr. Aghili's concert was scheduled to take place on Friday, August 5, at the Red Crescent Hall in Sabzevar, but for unknown reasons, the event has been canceled. Masoud Pasandideh, a member of the Sabzevar City Council, stated that 'this concert had a legal permit, and we have asked the authorities to explain the reasons for its cancellation.' Mohammad Ali-Abadi, the head of the cultural department in Sabzevar, has also requested the prosecutor's office to announce the reasons for the cancellation of this concert. Fars News Agency has reported that the order to cancel this concert was issued by the public and revolutionary prosecutor of Sabzevar. This news agency published an image of the prosecutor's order to the head of the city's information and public security police, which shows the cancellation of the concert without any explanation. Salar Aghili has expressed that he is 'very upset' about this issue and raised the question, 'Why, when a concert has a permit from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, should it face such issues?' Mr. Aghili added, 'We do not know our obligations; should we obtain a permit from the Ministry of Culture or the prosecutor's office? Or if a permit from the prosecutor's office is needed, then why should we get a permit from the Ministry of Culture?' The conflicts between the prosecutor's offices, police, and the Ministry of Culture regarding the issuance of permits and the execution of concerts in various cities in Iran have led to the cancellation of dozens of music programs, the latest being the cancellation of Salar Aghili's concert in Sabzevar. State media recently reported that the police's facilities department had 'convinced' itself to limit its comments to traffic and security issues related to concerts, but police officials later provided different explanations regarding this news. According to these media reports, on July 20, a resolution was communicated from the government to the police stating that 'holding concerts does not require inquiries from the police.' Meanwhile, Saeed Montazer al-Mahdi, the spokesman for the police, responded to the publication of these reports by saying, 'No change has occurred in the police's mission regarding the holding of concerts, and the police's duties will remain as before.' These negotiations and the issuance of the government's resolution came after multiple reports of the cancellation of concerts that had permits from the Ministry of Culture in Tehran and other cities in Iran. Concerts by famous musicians and singers such as Kayhan Kalhor and Shahram Nazeri have also been canceled in Nishapur, which has faced significant protests in Iran. The judiciary, the police's facilities department in Tehran, and the security council in counties are among the influential institutions in the cancellation of concerts that the Ministry of Culture had previously permitted. Ali Jannati, the Minister of Culture, also reacted to this issue by stating that the 'main responsible' entity in the field of culture and art is the Ministry of Culture, and only this ministry has a 'sovereign role' in this area. Meanwhile, police and judiciary officials have different opinions on this matter, and even commanders of the IRGC have entered this issue in support of the police. In this context, Masoud Jazayeri, the deputy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, stated in a 'directive' addressed to Hossein Ashtari, the commander of the police, that 'the mission of the police in dealing with moral anomalies, including the venues for concerts, must be carried out seriously.' Ahmad Alam al-Hoda, the representative of the Supreme Leader in Khorasan Razavi, also severely criticized the government's resolution on Friday, July 25, threatening that the judiciary would not allow 'the Islamic Republic of Iran to become a center for the development of corruption and vice.'