Security forces have arrested at least 160 people breaking Ramadan fast in public.
According to the website Hamedan Payam, security head of Hamadan Rasul Moradi said authorities warned people that they had committed an offense by breaking fast in public. If they then chose to ignore the warnings and continued with this behavior, they faced arrest, he said.
“In Islam nobody can break from fasting without a good reason,” Moradi said. Of course, those traveling and people with medical conditions are exempt from these regulations.”
He also said that the public supported these measures: “Security forces are only carrying out their duty. Cracking down on this behavior in mosques and public spaces is a popular demand.”
Police also arrested 60 people in Kermanshah province during patrols, and issued warnings to several others. According to Kiumars Azizi, deputy chief of security forces in the region, “On average, 100 people receive verbal notification about fasting every day. Also, four to five people are arrested daily.” He said people involved in the offenses were dealt with in tribunal hearings.
Moradi criticized people who ate in parks or smoked or brought food into open public spaces during Ramadan. But, he said, “Some of those arrested regretted it, and said that they were not aware of the regulations.”
Moradi pointed out that “buying food from shops and supermarkets is not forbidden” and reminded the public that those breaking fast under the age of 18 would not face prosecution.
Read the original articles in Persian
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