"Iranian police have ordered shut and sealed several Teheran bookshops which also provide coffee and snacks to readers, because of what one officer termed ‘a clash of professions.’"‘Based on the (booksellers) union law, owners of one type of business are not allowed to practise two different professions at the same time,’ head of Teheran police information, Colonel Mehdi Ahmadi, told AFP on Saturday. [...]
"Besides offering a pleasant atmosphere for book lovers, the book-cafes in Teheran also hosted cultural events.
"Since April, Iran has been pressing ahead with one of its toughest crackdowns in years, warning women about dressing immodestly, targeting ‘immoral’ cafes and seizing illegal satellite dishes."
Source: AFP
