TEHRAN — Iranian security forces arrested three critics of the government, summoned another, and confiscated their electronic devices, media reported on Monday.
Iranian news outlets, including the private, pro-reform Shargh daily, said that security forces in separate operations raided the homes of journalist Parviz Sedaghat, 61, Mahsa Asadollahnejad, a sociologist, and Shirin Karimi, a translator.
The Shargh report said authorities confiscated the electronic devices of Mohammad Maljou, a 53-year-old economist, and summoned him to appear before security officials. It said there was no information about Maljou after he willingly left his home to appear before the security body.
Reportedly, the four are leftist critics of the Islamic Republic’s theocratic system of government.
This is the first collective detention of leftist researchers in recent years. However, the country has a long history of arresting dissidents
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There were no immediate reports on the arrests by official and semiofficial media in Iran.
In this photo taken by an individual not employed by the Associated Press and obtained by the AP outside Iran, Iranians protest the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, in Tehran, Iran, October 27, 2022. (AP Photo)
Maljou, in his latest post on Telegram, urged people to oppose the country’s “war and isolation” and work to dissolve Iran’s “undemocratic” theocracy.
Israel launched a sweeping assault on Iran’s top military leaders, nuclear scientists, uranium enrichment sites, and ballistic missile program in June that it said was necessary to prevent the Islamic Republic from realizing its avowed plan to destroy the Jewish state. The US also bombed Iranian nuclear facilities during the war.
Iran has seen its economy collapse further into the red this year. But its theocracy so far hasn’t taken any major action to halt the slide.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
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