Civil Resistance Against Mandatory Hijab; 'Opal' Reopened, 'House of Friends' Closed

The trend of closing venues to confront the civil resistance of Iranian women against 'mandatory hijab' continues, with the latest being the closure of the 'House of Friends' café. A few days ago, images were published of a concert by the 'Damahi' group attended by several political and cultural figures protesting, which received widespread attention. Simultaneously with the announcement of the closure of the 'House of Friends' café, the 'Opal' complex in Tehran, which had been sealed a few days earlier, was reopened. Bahman Babazadeh, a music journalist, tweeted about the closure of the 'House of Friends,' stating that this café (located in Bagh Ferdows, Abbas Kiarostami St.) was the main base for 'fusion and small regional music groups' in Tehran, which was closed after the notable performance of the 'Damahi' group featuring 'Shervin Hajipour.' According to the website 'Asr Iran,' the reason for the closure of the 'House of Friends' café was reported as 'unveiling.' The performance of the 'Damahi' music group at the 'House of Friends' café in recent days not only hosted cultural guests like Shervin Hajipour, the singer of the global song 'For...', but also some political activists, including Hossein Ronaghi. On the other hand, despite the intense psychological atmosphere created by government media regarding 'severe action' against businesses where Iranian girls and women appear with optional hijab, the large commercial complex 'Opal' in Tehran, which had been closed for this reason, was reopened today, Sunday, April 30. Accordingly, the Opal complex, which was reported by the 'Fars' news agency affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards to have been closed a few days ago 'despite receiving multiple warnings' regarding 'unveiling' due to 'non-compliance with warnings,' was reopened today. The 'Baharniaz' website, close to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and one of the domestic media outlets, reacted to the extensive closures by government, security, and judicial bodies of the Islamic Republic, stating on April 25 that the country is being 'sealed off.' A citizen's account of the closure of several shops in 'Iran Mall' under the pretext of improper hijab continues the government's efforts to enforce mandatory hijab; 69 businesses were closed in Isfahan, and two other restaurants in Tehran were shut down under the pretext of combating unveiled women. The publication of photos of women without mandatory hijab; 'freedom is a daily practice.'