Museums, historical sites closed amid unrest while cinemas open
Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Ministry instructed the closure of all museums and historical sites as of January 9 until further notice due to the current unrest across the country.
Cinemas, however, continue to screen films as usual, though tickets can only be purchased in person due to the widespread internet shutdown. Under normal circumstances, 90% of tickets are purchased online, IRNA reported.
The National Library and Archives of Iran also operates as usual and will host the closing ceremony of the 16th research festival on Monday, January 12. The event will be attended by Cultural Heritage Minister Reza Salahi-Amiri.
Iran has seen economic protests in the past weeks which in certain cases led to violent clashes between rioters and security forces.
According to Iranian law enforcement officials, terrorist groups, led by the US and Israel, have taken advantage of the situation to destabilize the country.
As a result, many public places, including chain stores and banks, have been destroyed by these groups, while several civilians and security forces have also been killed during the operations.
Iran’s Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution announced in a statement on January 10 that the current riots are orchestrated by the United States and Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad, whose main strategy is extreme and widespread violence.
The statement accused the US and Israel of focusing on destroying the Iranian’s national unity after this exemplary solidarity caused their severe defeat in the 12-day war in June.
The purpose of this strategy, according to the council, is to pave the way for renewed military conflict against the country with direct US engagement to eventually disintegrate the country.
“They used the legitimate economic protests of some Iranians as a tool to kickstart their ‘revenge and disintegration’ project,” the statement read.
It explained that the forerunners of the riots are armed and organized people completely trained for urban fighting.
The council called on the public and the media to work toward promoting national unity and public vigilance and warned against any discourse that would undermine this solidarity and prepare the ground for a second military war.
It also urged families to caution their children against enemy plots, reminding them of the events in Syria and Venezuela.
“The US and Israel only aim to take possession of vital resources and other countries’ strategic position; for them, there is no difference between Iranian and non-Iranian,” the statement warned.