"The Kariz cafe-restaurant in Nahj al-Balagha Park, which had become a venue for serving alcoholic beverages, indecency (allowing women's clothing deemed inappropriate), violations of business regulations, and dancing, was sealed by police," the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Sunday.
Alcohol has been prohibited in Iran for more than four decades, with offenders facing fines, flogging, or even prison. Public dancing by women, or in front of unrelated men, is also banned as un-Islamic and can result in arrests or prosecution.
Authorities have recently intensified closures of cafes and restaurants nationwide, citing violations ranging from live music performances to women appearing without the compulsory Islamic veil.
In Qom, police recently announced the permanent closure of a cafe accused of hosting live music and warned that no new permits would be issued for such venues in the city.
Last week, the reformist newspaper Hammihan reported that in the past two months about 20 cafes, restaurants, and party halls had been shut down in Tehran and other cities over alleged female dress code violations.
The crackdown comes days before the third anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman who died in police custody on September 16, 2022, after being detained for allegedly violating veil regulations.
Her death sparked nationwide protests under the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom".Â
Initially focused on demands for greater social freedoms, the demonstrations soon escalated into calls for regime change. Security forces suppressed the protests in a crackdown that left about 500 people dead and 22,000 detained.
Since then, despite government efforts to restore compliance, many Iranian women continue to appear in public without the veil as an act of civil disobedience.
