Chief of The Greater Tehran Intelligence and Public Security Police on Monday said five individuals whose funny video clip made with special effects showing eggplants raining down from the sky in Tehran have been arrested. The video clip went viral on Iranian social media on Sunday.
Brigadier General Ali Zolqadri, the official who announced the arrests, did not say why a non-political video clip is cause for detention, but it appears that the quite credible-looking video showing surreal scenes of large eggplants raining down from the sky and falling on cars and people's heads could have evoked "end of the world" images in some people's minds. Most viewers, however, tried to explain the "phenomenon" as wind lifting the eggplants from somewhere and raining them down on Tehran or they took the entire thing as a prank.
Many immediately started making jokes about "eggplant rain" and sharing them on social media. "Weekly End of the World Rain Schedule: Saturday (Spinach), Sunday (Eggplants), Monday (Celery), Tuesday (Radishes)," Mr Strange wrote on Twitter.
Quite a few of the eggplant jokes became very political, with one making fun of Supreme Leader Khamenei's claim that coronavirus may be a biological weapon the United States has used against Iran. "He is going to say we are under 'vegetable attack'," another user tweeted.
Due to the current coronavirus epidemic thoughts of a catastrophic end have been occupying the minds of some religious believers and the Police and security bodies may have interpreted the video clips from this perspective as public security threats or insults to religious beliefs.
Echoing possible conspiracy motivation for releasing the video clips the Chief of the Intelligence and Public Security Police said the makers of the video clips are going to apologize to the public and make it clear that they "are not affiliated to any particular group".