Iran ramps up clampdown on businesses amid struggle over social freedoms

Nearly a hundred self-publishing artists came from across the country, with a few from abroad, filling the yard with books, zines, postcards, sketches and personal projects.

In Iran, every published book must pass through the censors of the Ministry of Culture.

For years, authorities swiftly seized unlicensed works. Yet in recent months, the state often pretends not to see. Unpermitted concerts are staged, books are printed and sold unlicensed, exhibitions openly defy religious and political red lines, independent theaters perform and participants dress freely.

Only when photos or videos go viral and outrage hardliners does the government intervene, eager to placate the constituency it deems vital for survival.

New normal?

That evening, the turnout itself was striking. The organizers had deliberately avoided publicity, fearing a shutdown, but word spread and the courtyard filled with hundreds of people.

Stalls offered original stories, photo collections, paintings, handmade magazines, and designs unseen elsewhere.

Even the clothing became a statement. Women wore sleeveless dresses and shorts. Some men, too, chose shorts—now more likely to be banned than unveiled women.

I spoke with a young woman who had turned her mother’s life into a photo-book, a couple selling posters on Palestine and Gaza, and a Berlin project created by queer refugees and migrants— extraordinary in a country where queer life faces relentless suppression.

The fair lasted three days, with workshops and discussions, all unlicensed and therefore illegal.

It belonged to the wave of activity born of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement, shaped by the conviction that freedom must be lived, not pleaded for or postponed.

Live not fight

One organizer recalled the police once stopping by, noticing women in sleeveless tops, and saying: “We don’t care about these things. We see worse uptown. Just don’t block driveways.”

The art they ignored entirely.

No one believes this space is permanent. The same authorities who tolerate unveiled women in cafés one week seal those cafés the next. Crackdowns and reopenings follow in cycles.

Yet people do not retreat. They build communities, collaborate and bring into being what they once thought dependent on systemic change.

Politics may dictate sanctions in New York, but in Tehran courtyards people go on writing, printing, painting and performing—in disregard more than defiance—living the freedom they’re no longer willing to wait for.

Hossein Pourfarzaneh, the organization’s chief, said during a ceremony in Tehran that the newly inducted aircraft-- along with one helicopter and five small passenger planes -- would add more than 2,500 seats to the country’s aviation network.

“These projects are aimed at improving service quality and expanding air connectivity across the country, including to the islands and remote provinces,” Pourfarzaneh was quoted as saying by the Tasnim news agency.

He said 13 transportation projects worth about $125 million had been launched to strengthen Iran’s air infrastructure.

According to Pourfarzaneh, Iran has added over 5,100 passenger seats since 2021.

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  Iran receives Russian MiG-29 jets, expects more advanced systems, lawmaker says

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  Iran Air receives two used Airbus A330s in oil-for-planes deal with China

Iran has struggled for decades to modernize its aging fleet due to international sanctions restricting aircraft sales and access to spare parts.

More than half of its estimated 330 commercial planes are grounded, forcing Tehran to rely on leased or secondhand aircraft.

Earlier this year, Iran took delivery of several used Airbus A330s from China under barter deals involving oil, according to domestic media reports.

Late in September, an Iranian lawmaker said Russian MiG-29 fighter jets have arrived in Iran and officials also discussed acquiring additional Russian-built jets, including Sukhoi Su-35s, as part of broader defense and transport cooperation with Moscow.

After five consecutive years of drought, the country began the new water year with severely depleted reserves. Nationwide, reservoirs are only 35% full, and inflows to major dams have fallen by half compared with last year.

Dams in Tehran, Khorasan, Kerman, Hormozgan, and Zanjan provinces are among those at critical levels, while the Shamil, Niyan, Voshmgir, Golestan, and Roudbal dams have reached zero storage.

Officials warn that the persistent decline poses growing risks for drinking water, agriculture, and industry across much of the country.

At least 54 dead seals have been found on the shores of Mazandaran Province since March, according to environmental officials quoted by Tasnim News Agency.

The Caspian seal (Pusa caspica), the sea’s only native mammal, faces growing threats from pollution, overfishing, shrinking freshwater inflows and rising water salinity.

Environmental experts said entanglement in fishing gear, motorboat strikes and disease are also contributing to the deaths.

They warned that the decline of the species -- a key predator in the marine food chain -- could disrupt the ecological balance of the world’s largest enclosed body of water.

Conservation groups have called for tighter controls on fishing, pollution reduction and regional cooperation among Caspian littoral states to protect the endangered species.

Brigadier General Ahmadali Goudarzi told state media that Tehran had documented the incidents and submitted official complaints, without naming the countries involved.

He said Iran’s borders remain “among the most secure in the region” thanks to advanced monitoring systems and coordination with neighboring states.

Goudarzi added that about 96% of Iran’s borders are under direct control of border forces and that operations continue against smuggling and illegal crossings.