Iranian authorities have reportedly closed down a well-known cafe chain, Lamiz, on Saturday, following controversy over a coffee cup design that allegedly mocked the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Often likened to the Starbucks of Tehran, Lamiz had introduced a coffee cup featuring a 1975 artwork by Iranian artist Farshid Mesghali. The design displays an empty chair beneath a cascade of purple and red raindrops, as reported by Iran International.
In response, all Lamiz branches were closed by the government, according to the media outlet.
The artwork originally served as the poster for the 10th Tehran International Festival of Films for Children and Young Adults in 1975.
Additionally, the phrase “spring is coming” is inscribed in Farsi on the back of the cup.
Supporters of the Iranian regime viewed the empty chair as a symbol of the seat once used by Khamenei, who was killed in a joint US-Israeli airstrike on February 28, which marked the onset of the Iran war. They interpreted this as an affront to the supposed “martyrdom” of the former leader of the Islamic Republic.
The Islamic Republic came to power during the 1979 Islamic Revolution ushering out the prior monarchy rule.
Lamiz cafes are known as social gathering places for young people in the conservative Islamic country where alcohol is prohibited, according to a 2016 profile on the franchise.
A March 16 video shared on social media showed an AI-generated branch of a Lamiz cafe bombed out, on fire and smoldering. A caption shared to Instagram read, “All the attachments to Trump were a mirage!”
Cafe Lamiz has more than 40 branches across Iran with many located in Tehran and is known for its hipster vibe, according to online reviews.
