Iran closed the restaurant "Bibi's Kitchen"

Iranian authorities blocked the Instagram account of a restaurant in Tehran named "Bibi's Kitchen" after it posted a story with the caption "There's nothing like Bibi's meatball." The wordplay combined the nickname of Benjamin Netanyahu with the term "cutlet," used by regime opponents as a mockery of senior Revolutionary Guard members who have been eliminated. The account was blocked by court order for publishing criminal content.

Iranian authorities blocked the Instagram account of a restaurant in Tehran named "Bibi's Kitchen" after it posted a story with the caption "There's nothing like Bibi's meatball," accompanied by the song "Bibi Goal" by Iranian singer Moein. The wordplay combined the nickname of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the term "kotlet" (meatball), which has become a derogatory term since the elimination of Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani in January 2020, and is used by regime opponents to mock senior Revolutionary Guard members who have been eliminated. Shortly after the post went viral, the account was blocked by court order for publishing criminal content. The article notes that Iranian authorities have previously acted against the use of the word "meatball": in January 2023, a chef was arrested for publishing a meatball recipe on the anniversary of Soleimani's elimination; in January 2024, a doctor was arrested for publishing a picture of a meatball on the night of the elimination of senior Revolutionary Guard member Razi Mousavi; and last June, a criminal case was opened against a playwright who wrote that politics turns men into meatballs. Sensitivity around issues related to Israel has intensified during the current war, and authorities announced in March over a thousand arrests on charges of sharing anti-government materials.

Iran closed the restaurant "Bibi's Kitchen"