Arrest of a Former Producer of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting

Mostafa Azizi, a former writer and producer for the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), has been in detention in Iran for nearly two months. Azizi, who left Iran in 2010 and settled in Canada, returned to the country last year to visit family but was arrested shortly after on February 1 and transferred to Evin Prison. A source close to him told Radio Farda that this writer and television producer spent about a month of his detention in solitary confinement. The charges against Azizi include 'insulting the leadership, insulting the founder of the Islamic Republic, and propaganda against the regime.' Mostafa Azizi has years of experience producing for IRIB, with the show 'Talash' being one of his notable productions. His son, Arash Azizi, wrote on Facebook that his father is in 'good' physical and mental condition, has not faced 'physical abuse,' and has regular phone and in-person contact with relatives. Previously, Mohammad Hassan Qashqavi, the consular deputy of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, stated that among Iranians abroad, 'at most three percent are active opposition' and that 'there are problems for their entry into the country' and 'as soon as they enter, a legal case is formed against them.' Judiciary officials have also stated that Iranians abroad who are sentenced in absentia will be arrested upon their return to the country.