Iranian journalist Saba Azarpeik arrested
Iranian journalist Saba Azarpeik was arrested by security agencies in Iran.
Unofficial reports indicate that Ms. Azarpeik was arrested for publishing letters to the Islamic Consultative Assembly on the Ministry of Intelligence letterhead before the vote of confidence of Mohammad Shariamtadari, the current Minister of Labor and Social Affairs of Iran.
These letters were about Shariatmadari's connection to the case of registering orders and illegal car imports during his tenure as Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade.
This comes while Iran's Minister of Labor and Social Affairs confirmed the journalist's arrest in a tweet, but called Azarpeik's claim of being connected to illegal car imports false.
These letters were about Shariatmadari's connection to the case of registering orders and illegal car imports during his tenure as Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade.
This comes while Iran's Minister of Labor and Social Affairs confirmed the journalist's arrest in a tweet, but called Azarpeik's claim of being connected to illegal car imports false.
After hearing the news of the arrest of one of the journalists, I followed up. Unfortunately, it was true. Despite the false claims he had made and, in a strange move, he had published the previous and normal information discovered by us on the confidential letterhead and in an incomplete form, I told the authorities that I was in no way satisfied with his arrest or that of any journalist.
While the journalist's Twitter account has been inaccessible since his arrest, many users, including journalists, are calling for his release.
Yashar Soltani, the director of the Memari News website, which exposed the "astronomical property" list two years ago, wrote in a tweet about Azarpeik's arrest that "look for the line of influence in sensitive institutions, not among journalists."
One user reposted images of documents published by Azarpeek regarding the connection between Shariatmadari and illegal car imports:
Source: Voice of America
