Vida Rabbani, who works for Seda magazine and before worked for Shargh, a leading newspaper in Iran, has been under solitary confinement in Evin Detention Centre in Tehran for over 10 days. She was only allowed to make a short phone call with her family to inform them about her arrest.
The authorities have not revealed the reason for her arrest, but a source close to the case told the IFJ it was because of her tweets about the recent protests in Iran on the anniversary of the downing of the Ukrainian commercial flight. It’s the second time she has been arrested for this reason.
During the protests in November 2019, thousands of citizens were arrested and more than 230 citizens were shot, according to the state officials.
According to sources contacted by the IFJ, Vida Rabbani was supposed to be released on bail a few days ago, but the judiciary is yet to decide on her bail application.
The IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: “We condemn the arrest of journalist Vida Rabbani and the systematic harassment of media workers by the Iranian regime. This is yet another example of how the Iranian government abuses the legal system to clamp down on critical voices in the country. She must be released immediately.”