Leading activist in Iran arrested after statement

TT

Published 19.01

 

A demonstration in Berlin on Saturday in support of regime critics in Iran. Photo: Ebrahim Noroozi/AP/TT

The leading activist Ghorban Behzadian-Nejad has been arrested after he supported a statement criticizing the regime in Iran.

The information about the arrest comes from the reformist Shargh. The daily writes that the authorities' anger over the document is linked to the widespread critical reactions after the regime's brutal crackdown on demonstrations in Iran.

Previously, the supported filmmaker Mehdi Mahmoudian, among others, has been arrested after he signed the critical statement.

The document, called the Statement of 17, was initiated by the leading opposition politician and former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi, who has been under house arrest since 2011.

The statement calls for, among other things, free and open elections and democratic development in the country.