Arrests Made over Romantic Video in Hafez Tomb Complex

Two managers of the historical complex housing the tomb of celebrated 14th-century poet Hafez in Shiraz were arrested and a provincial cultural official was suspended after a video featuring a romantic encounter meters away from the tomb went viral on social media.

The video appeared on social media on May 29, showing a young man proposing to a woman without a mandatory headscarf. The woman then accepts the proposal and embraces her suitor. 

🎥 استاندار فارس انتشار این ویدیو از یک مراسم #خواستگاری را مصداق «لاابالی گری» و «هنجارشکنی» خواند و رسانه‌های ایران از بازداشت دو مدیر #حافظیه به دلیل انجام این خواستگاری خبر داده‌اند. ۸ خرداد#شهروندخبرنگار #حجاب_اجباری pic.twitter.com/npXO7gdjKL

— ایران وایر (@iranwire) May 29, 2023

Iranian news agencies reported that two managers from the Hafezieh historical complex were arrested in connection with the video, while the general director of cultural heritage in Fars province was suspended from his duties pending further investigation by judicial authorities.

Mohammad Hadi Imanieh, the governor of Fars province, warned that "appropriate" measures will be taken against the young man and woman involved in the incident, which he called a “direct violation of societal norms."

"Those who attempt to promote disobedience and corruption in an organized manner will face legal consequences for their actions," he said. 

A brutal repression unleashed by the Islamic Republic has largely succeeded in quelling months of nationwide demonstrations sparked by the September death of Mahsa Amini in police custody. But acts of civil disobedience have continued, with many women flouting mandatory hijab rules.