Iranian regime bans tours on Yalda, celebration for arrival of winter

                     

The Iranian regime has banned tours on this year's Yalda festival - which marks the Northern Hemisphere’s shortest night of the year - and warned offenders that they will be 'dealt with'.

Shab-e Yalda, or Yalda night, is celebrated on the night between the last day of the ninth month (Azar) and the first day of the tenth month (Day) of the Iranian civil calendar, which corresponds to the night of December 20 or 21 each year.

But Rajabali Khosravi, the head of the Cultural Heritage, Handcrafts and Tourism Organization has issued an order banning tours on the night, which this year coincides with a religious occasion.

In most parts of Iran, Shab-e Yalda is a time when friends and extended family come together to eat dinner and read poetry (especially Hafez) until after midnight.

Fruits and sweetmeats including watermelon, pomegranate, nuts and dried fruit are often wrapped in tulle and tied in ribbon, and offered as gifts to family and friends.

The celebration is named after the pre-Zoroastrian god of creation and light. Central Asian countries such as Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and some Caucasian states like Azerbaijan and Armenia share the same tradition as well and celebrate Yalda Night annually at this time of the year.