Tomaj Salehi ‘Arrested in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari’

After state news agencies reported the arrest of Tomaj Salehi, a protest singer, claiming he was “apprehended during illegal border crossing in the western regions of the country,” his Twitter account and his uncle announced that he had been arrested in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province.

The “Daneshsho” news agency, one of the outlets close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, reported the news and published a photo of the protest singer blindfolded inside a car.

Hours later, Tomaj Salehi’s Twitter account, while denying the claim about his arrest “during border crossing,” published an image of a previous message from Mr. Salehi to his account manager showing his instructions for after his arrest.

This account became inaccessible minutes after publishing these two messages.

Meanwhile, Iqbal Iqbali, Tomaj Salehi’s uncle, also released a statement announcing that Tomaj “was in Gardbisheh Bakhtiari when, from 4:30 AM, he reported observing suspicious matters at his hideout, after which contact was lost and neighbors reported his arrest to some of his friends.”

Gardbisheh is a village in the Gandom district of Broujerd city in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, Iran.

Tomaj Salehi’s uncle also called the photo published by the Revolutionary Guards-affiliated news agencies about Tomaj’s arrest “photoshopped.”

Some Twitter users also pointed out to others that despite the arrest taking place in darkness at dawn hours, the published photo shows daylight. Some users also raised other indicators about the authenticity of the photo.

On Sunday afternoon, Mizan News Agency, affiliated with the judiciary, confirmed Tomaj Salehi’s arrest, quoting Seyyed Mohammad Mousavian, the prosecutor of Isfahan, claiming he “played a key role in creating riots and inciting and encouraging recent unrest in Isfahan Province and in Shahinshahr city.”

According to this judicial official, Tomaj Salehi “was arrested by judicial representation in one of the country’s provinces and is currently under investigation by the preliminary examination branch, and after full case review will be referred to court for trial.”

Tomaj Salehi, a rap singer from Shahinshahr, Isfahan, whose residence had been hidden and who published many messages in support of people during nationwide protests, had written two days ago to the Revolutionary Guards and Shahinshahr intelligence, saying that if they released detainees from protests in that city by midnight, he would surrender himself to security forces the next day.

However, at midnight he wrote to them: “I just wanted to show what cowardly pests you are. You are the same scum who use ambulances to transport suppression forces and arrest people.”

Mr. Salehi was arrested on September 21 of last year at his home following the release of several protest songs, and was released a few days later on bail.

He himself reported last February that the court had sentenced him to a fine and six months suspended imprisonment on charges of “insulting the Supreme Leader and propaganda against the system.”

Source: Radio Farda