Celebrity chef arrested in Iran over recipe for chops on anniversary of Suleimani’s death

Iran has arrested a prominent chef and influencer after releasing a recipe for Persian schnitzel on the anniversary of Qasem Soleimani’s death, human rights groups and supporters said.

Navab Ebrahimi was arrested in the capital Tehran on Wednesday and taken to the city’s Evin prison, the Human Rights Activists news agency said.

No official reason was given for his arrest, but supporters had noted that Ebrahimi had posted a recipe for Persian chops on the anniversary of Soleimani’s death.

Some opponents of the Iranian regime previously posted pictures of the mince pies on social media on the anniversary of Suleimani’s death to highlight how the regime’s military commander was blown up and killed by a US drone strike in 2020.

Navab Ebrahimi was arrested in the capital Tehran on Wednesday and taken to the city’s Evin prison, the Human Rights Activists news agency said

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi delivers a speech January 3 during a memorial ceremony in the capital Tehran to mark the third anniversary of the US assassination of Qasem Soleimani

Qasem Soleimani was the commander of Iran’s Quds Force, a secret elite unit of Iran’s military, and the country’s most powerful general.

He was killed three years ago at Baghdad airport in an airstrike ordered by former US President Donald Trump.

Celebrity chef Navab Ebrahimi is known in Iran for his videos promoting Persian cuisine, with approximately 2.7 million followers on Instagram and hundreds of thousands of people watching his YouTube channel.

Since his arrest, Ebrahimi’s main Instagram account has been inaccessible.

His arrest comes as the Iranian regime continues its crackdown on nationwide protests.

The Evin prison in Tehran, where he was taken, is known for housing the regime’s political prisoners.

The Persian chops – or chops – mince pies are thought to be a nod to the tyrant of the regime that was blown up by a US drone in January 2020

Iran’s Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani is pictured in Tehran, Iran in September 2016

Soleimani was killed three years ago at Baghdad airport in an airstrike ordered by former US President Donald Trump on January 3, 2020

The New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran said: “Chef and influencer Navab Ebrahimi has been arrested in Tehran.

“Social media users are speculating that his arrest had something to do with his Instagram story.”

Nik Yousefi, an Iranian filmmaker and photographer arrested in October as part of the raid before his release, wrote on Twitter that Ebrahimi had been arrested and his cafe in Tehran had been closed.

As the Iranian authorities organized events to commemorate the death of Suleimani this week, critics of the regime also took to social media to share images of people setting fire to pictures of the former Quds Force commander.

Regime officials and clerics gathered in a memorial ceremony in the capital Tehran on Tuesday to mark the third anniversary of his death. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi addressed the gathering.

Iran has arrested at least 14,000 people in the wave of protests sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, according to the UN.

Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman, was arrested in September last year for allegedly violating the strict dress code for women.

Prominent journalists, filmmakers, lawyers and activists have been arrested. Some have been released on bail, while others remain in prison.