In Iran, authorities arrest three more female journalists in 48 hours: Report

As protests continue to escalate in Iran, reports have emerged that Iranian authorities have now arrested three more female journalists on Sunday. So far, a total of 69 media activists have been arrested as the nation continues to protests against the Iranian regime over the custodial death of 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini.

According to Iran International, the three female journalists who were taken into custody have been identified as Saeedeh Shafiei, Mehrnoosh Zarei, and Malika Hashemi. Taking to Twitter, Saeedeh Shafiei's husband Hassan Homayoun confirmed his wife, who is a writer and a civil activist, was arrested by the country's security forces at their home.

Meanwhile, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reportedly said that Shafiei was arrested and sent to an unknown place. The reason for her arrest is unknown, the outlet reported, citing HRANA. Another journalist, Zarei, was arrested and transferred to the Evin prison in the capital Tehran, the outlet reported.

Iran: Three more female journalists arrested in 48 hours

"The security forces searched Zarei's house without introducing their institutional affiliation and, after confiscating some of her digital equipment, they took her to the prison," wrote HRANA.

According to reports, nearly 70 journalists have been arrested by Iranian authorities with several journalists sent to lifetime imprisonment and banned from leaving the country. Earlier, the judiciary claimed that "no journalist is in prison because of his/her job" over the arrest of media activists. 

Iran protests

Despite the Iranian government's brutal crackdown on protestors, involving hundreds of killings, mass detentions, and four executions so far, protests in Iran continue, though the number of demonstrations has declined significantly. Reports suggest that people are waiting and looking for a window to come back to the street. A wave of protests occurred against the Iranian government in Tehran on September 16, 2022, after the custodial death of Mahsa Amini who was arrested by the Guidance Patrol for not wearing hijab according to country's law.

Image: AP