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KFC-branded restaurant shut down in Iran for lack of licence: police

Xinhua, November 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

A KFC-branded fried chicken restaurant opened in Iran's capital Tehran on Monday was shut down after 24 hours since it did not have licence for operation, a police officer said here on Wednesday.

"Besides, the restaurant had used the KFC brand for its operation, as it did not have anything to do with the KFC," Sardar Khalil Halali was quoted as saying by Iran's AsrIran news website.

On Tuesday, Abbas Pazooki, the manager of the restaurant in the west of Tehran, said that it was shut down since the police mistook it for a branch of the U.S. KFC, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported.

"This restaurant has no links with the U.S. KFC," Pazooki was quoted as saying.

The closure of Iranian Halal KFC was a "misunderstanding," and the restaurant in Tehran was a branch of Turkish "KFC Halal" and its target market is the Muslim customers in the Muslim states, he said.

Local media said that the interior decoration of the restaurant, which was similar to the U.S. flag, and the logo used inside and outside of the restaurant was the copy of the U.S. KFC, which was the main reason for the closure of the restaurant. "Closed until further notice," the sign posted on the door of the restaurant on Tuesday read.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had already warned that the July landmark deal between Iran and the world powers over the former's controversial nuclear program will not open the doors for the U.S. cultural influence in the country.

On Wednesday, the ex-minister of Culture and Islamic Guidence, Seyed Mohammad Hoseini, said that "the emblems and cultural signs of the United States, including McDonalds and KFC, have no room in Iran."

"One of the complicated programs of the western countries is infiltration in the country through cultural products, which is the source of concerns," he was quoted as saying by the semi-official ISNA news agency.

On Tuesday, Laurie Schalow, a KFC spokesperson told U.S.-based Mashable media website that "No franchise rights have been granted to any party in Iran. We are in contact with local authorities and external advisers and will be filing a legal action against any company or individuals claiming to have rights to open KFC."

Iran's Prosecutor General, Seyed Ebrahim Raeisi, said Wednesday that the step by Iranian students 36 years ago to take over the U.S. embassy in the Tehran prevented America's attempts to further advance their influence on Iran.

Iranians rallied Wednesday marking the 36th anniversary of taking over the U.S. embassy. Demonstrators gathered in front of the former U.S. embassy in the center of Tehran, now called the "Den of Espionage."

A resolution issued toward the gathering's end called on Iranian officials to beware of the U.S. influence upon its return to the country.

The United States severed diplomatic relations with Iran on April 7, 1980, following the embassy takeover and capture of 60 U.S. diplomats in 1979, 52 of whom remained in captivity for 444 days during the hostage crisis. Endit