Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Sunday arrested seven people with ‘ties’ to the UK, some of whom have dual citizenship, over anti-government protests that have rocked the country, according to a statement carried by state media.
“Seven key leaders of recent UK-linked protests (and) have been arrested by IRGC (Revolutionary Guard) intelligence, including dual nationals attempting to leave the country,” the press release read.
The UK Foreign Office said it was seeking more information from the Iranian authorities about the dual nationality detainees. Iran has been conducting hostage diplomacy since the 1980s, using foreign prisoners as a means of lobbying to win certain cases.
Since the government does not recognize dual nationality, it often denies prisoners with dual nationality access, already limited in prison, to consular services. According to the French authorities, seven French people are currently detained in Iran.
protests since september
The arrests announced Sunday follow protests sparked by the death in custody on September 16 of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman, arrested for wearing “inappropriate clothing” under Iran’s strict Islamic dress code for women. women.
The protests, in which demonstrators from all walks of life have called for the fall of Iran’s ruling theocracy, remain one of the biggest challenges for the Islamic Republic since the 1979 revolution.
The government has blamed the unrest on protesters bent on destroying public property and says they are trained and armed by enemies including the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Source: BFM TV
