France rejected the idea of NATO taking part in any international mission to secure navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, saying the military alliance was not designed for operations in the Middle East.
“The North Atlantic Treaty applies to the North Atlantic,” French foreign ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux said on Thursday. “It is neither its purpose, nor in reality the appropriate alliance” to focus on Hormuz, he told a weekly press briefing.
The initiative drew renewed attention after a video circulated online this week showing a couple marrying at one of the gatherings, turning a state-backed rally into a showcase for a policy goal many young Iranians say has become unaffordable.
Fars News, an outlet close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported that matchmaking booths had been set up at rallies in Tehran, allowing young men and women to register for introductions under what organizers call “easy marriage.”
The report said some visitors had already completed initial registration, with organizers collecting basic personal information before matching applicants by age, education and religious beliefs.
“Families come here looking for a good future for their children,” a woman overseeing one of the stalls said in comments published by Fars. “We try to make marriage easier by reducing expectations.”
She said the gatherings were a suitable venue because “family is one of the country’s core cultural values,” adding that men had registered in greater numbers than women.
The campaign comes as Iranian officials warn of falling marriage and birth rates, even as economists and sociologists point to inflation, unemployment, housing shortages and declining purchasing power as major reasons many young people delay family life.
Official statistics show marriage rates falling sharply over the past decade as the average age of marriage rises, especially in large cities where housing and living costs have surged.
Economic pressure collides with state messaging
The campaign also reflects a broader push by the Islamic Republic to frame marriage as a cultural and ideological priority despite worsening economic conditions that many young Iranians say make long-term commitments difficult.
State-linked media and religious institutions have increasingly promoted simpler weddings, lower dowries and earlier marriage as officials try to reverse Iran’s demographic decline.
At the same time, online platforms offering temporary religious unions – known in Shiite jurisprudence as sigheh – continue to operate openly across messaging applications and websites, creating what critics describe as a parallel market built around legally sanctioned short-term relationships.
An investigation by Iran International previously found Telegram channels advertising “Islamic marriage services” that arranged fixed-term unions in exchange for payments, with some operators presenting the arrangements as religiously approved alternatives to prohibited sexual relationships.
The investigation found some services demanded payments for introductions alone, while others offered monthly arrangements with fees varying according to age, location and education level.
The booths turn ideological rallies into platforms for state-backed social messaging. Organizers told Fars they urge young people to lower expectations and marry earlier.
Critics say the campaign ignores the economic pressures keeping many Iranians from marriage, including stagnant wages, high rents and uncertainty about the future.
