Since last year, the Islamic regime’s Basij forces have been targeting cafes because students and intellectuals meet there to share ideas often deemed “Western.” The Basij are under the command of Iran’s supreme leader and are tasked with carrying out a range of police functions—including suppressing dissident activity and making sure “morals” are not being breached. Previously the Basij were among a group of officers that in 2012 raided a reported 87 restaurants and cafes for “not following Islamic values,” such as by allowing women to smoke pipes in public.
Now, the authorities are turning to a new tactic: surveillance. This became apparent last week, when one of Tehran’s most popular cafes, Café Prague, closed in protest after state officials had tried to force it to install a series of cameras inside its premises.
