Tehran , Iran ( CNN ) -- Iran 's supreme leader is attempting to extinguish an annual event celebrating the last days of winter and the Persian calendar year , and the government is strengthening its security presence in the days leading up to a major holiday , Iranian media reported . Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday urged Iranians to dismiss the ancient practice of fire jumping and feasting on Chaharshanbe Soori , a festival held on the eve of the last Wednesday before spring -- this year , March 16 . The activities date back thousands of years . The festivities have no basis in Islam , and can cause `` harm and corruption , '' Khamenei said in a statement published by Iranian news sites . `` It is appropriate to avoid it , '' he said . The celebrations lead up to Norooz , the holiday that marks the first day of spring and the Persian new year . Norooz falls on Saturday this year . Iran is beefing up security to ensure `` order and calm '' during the two-week period celebrating Norooz , stationing 200,000 security personnel across the Islamic republic , according to Raja news , the official new site of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad . In the eastern city of Mashad , the chief prosecutor said those who engage in `` disruptive behavior '' during Chaharshanbe Soori would face `` strong consequences . '' It 's a precaution that 's become increasingly commonplace in Iran , especially in advance of holidays , as the government continues to warn against political demonstrations that have emerged since last summer 's disputed presidential elections . Most recently , the Iranian government quashed anti-government protests that brewed in February as the nation commemorated the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution , which marked the end of the country 's Western-backed monarchy and the start of an Islamic republic . In the days that led up to the February 11 holiday , the government mobilized security forces and heightened its warnings , saying it would arrest protesters and hold them until the April 9 end of Norooz . Six protesters who were arrested in December on the Muslim holiday of Ashura were sentenced to death on Monday , the day before Chaharshanbe Soori , the semi-official Fars news agency reported Monday . Their sentences are being reviewed by an appeals court , Fars said . And some 350 inmates at Evin prison have gone on hunger strike to demand that their cases be examined before Norooz , saying their ward is so overcrowded with recent political arrestees that prisoners are in poor health , according to the Committee of Human Rights Reporters , an Iranian group . There were also reports that opposition leader Mehdi Karrubi 's home was vandalized . Karrubi 's Eetemade-Melli ( National Trust ) party 's Web site , called Saham News , said a group had gathered in front of his house and tossed red paint on the walls of the apartment building . Two weeks earlier , a similar group threw tomatoes and eggs at the building , the Web site said . A video identifying a vandalized apartment building as Karrubi 's was posted on YouTube Monday , showing exterior walls scrawled with the last names of Karrubi , fellow opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi and former President Mohammad Khatami -- all reformists . In some areas , the black spray paint read `` death to Karrubi '' and `` death to Khatami . '' Anti-government demonstrations began after the disputed June 12 presidential vote , which re-elected hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over main opposition candidate Mir Hossein Moussavi . Eyewitnesses in Iran said thousands of riot police and security officers lined the streets of the capital , Tehran , and patrolled major intersections on motorcycles and on foot Monday night . Beginning Saturday , police also set up checkpoints along major roads in Tehran , and vehicles have been stopped and searched from late at night into the early morning hours , witnesses said . CNN 's Reza Sayah contributed to this report .
Chaharshanbe Soori tries to stop the last days of winter event celebrating the last days of winter . He urges Persian to avoid ancient practice of fire jumping , feasting on Ayatollah Ali Khamenei . He says festivities have no basis in Islam and can cause `` harm and corruption '' Iran is beefing up security to ensure `` order and calm '' during the the last days of winter festivities .