Seven people with links to Britain have been arrested by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards over anti-government protests that have snowballed across the country in recent months, according to reports, The Guardian reports.
The people arrested, some of whom are dual nationals, were detained while trying to leave Iran, according to Reuters, citing a statement published by state media.
The UK’s Foreign Office is understood to be seeking further information from the Iranian authorities on reports that British-Iranian dual nationals have been arrested. The statement that was published in state media read: “Seven main leaders of the recent protests related to the UK were detained by intelligence services of the IRGC [Revolutionary Guards], including dual nationals, who were trying to leave the country.”
The reported arrests follow unrest triggered by the death in detention of Mahsa Amini on 16 September. The 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian had been arrested for wearing “inappropriate attire” under Iran’s Islamic dress code for women.
Witnesses said Amini was beaten while inside a police van when she was picked up in Tehran. Police have denied the allegations, saying she “suddenly suffered a heart problem”.
The protests, in which demonstrators have called for the fall of Iran’s ruling theocracy, have posed one of the biggest challenges to the Shia Muslim-ruled Islamic Republic since the 1979 revolution.