December 29, 2017
Iranian police arrested 230 young people on the night of Shab-e Yalda for drinking and using drugs. Some 140 were arrested in a garden in the Lavasan district of Tehran, while the other 90 were rounded up at a party in Farmanieh in north Tehran. The Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) said some partygoers posted an open invitation on Instagram, which apparently tipped the police off. Drinking alcohol is punishable with 80 lashes, though in recent years violators have more often been fined.