Deployment of Government Forces in Central Tehran and Widespread Arrests of Protesters

Simultaneously with a call from a group of supporters of the "Green Movement" leaders for a protest gathering on Thursday, February 25, demanding an end to the house arrest of the leaders of the 2009 election protests, reports indicate a significant presence of government forces in central Tehran and "widespread arrests" in the streets surrounding Tehran University. In this regard, the Telegram channel Kalameh, close to Mir Hossein Mousavi, one of the leaders of the 2009 election protests, reported, citing "eyewitnesses," that by noon on Thursday, "more than 400 people had been arrested at the gathering to lift the house arrest and were transferred to the police headquarters near Enghelab Square, with some released after interrogation." This channel reported the "arrest of Hossein Laghmanian, a representative of the sixth term of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and a war veteran, in front of Tehran University along with his brother" and noted that Hossein Laghmanian had been arrested multiple times after the 2009 protests and served his sentence under very harsh conditions in Hamadan prison. Earlier, Saham News reported that "at least 100 police vehicles" had been deployed in the streets surrounding Tehran University, and "two family members of Ayatollah Montazeri" were among those arrested. It was later announced that Saeed and Saeedeh Montazeri had been arrested by government forces. One day before the gathering, several individuals involved in organizing this protest, including Rahim Qamishi, Akbar Danesh Saroudi, Nasser Daneshfar, Mahmoud Dardakshan, and his son, were also arrested. The purpose of the gathering on Thursday was stated to be a protest against the continued house arrest of the "Green Movement" leaders. Saham News, in this context, published a statement from the "protesters" demanding the government "end the long-term illegal house arrest" of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard. House arrest without trial or verdict has been one of the strategies of the Islamic Republic in dealing with some of its leaders who have gradually opposed it and have been removed from power. Karroubi, Mousavi, and his wife Zahra Rahnavard have been under house arrest since February 2011. Mir Hossein Mousavi, a presidential candidate in the 2009 government election and a rival of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, became known as one of the leaders of the widespread protests that became known as the "Green Movement." Mir Hossein Mousavi, who was one of the main figures in the Iranian government during one of the darkest periods of the Islamic Republic as Prime Minister, joined the ranks of the opposition during the controversial 2009 election, which was accompanied by widespread protests against "election fraud" and led to the suppression of protesters. Nevertheless, his record in the 1980s has always been criticized by opponents of the Islamic Republic, and his role in the suppressions of the 1980s has always been raised. Mir Hossein Mousavi was the last Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic during the leadership of Ruhollah Khomeini and before the constitutional revision in 1989. One of Zahra Rahnavard's daughters published a story on Instagram on Tuesday, sharing part of her mother's account of the day when the "house arrest" of Mir Hossein Mousavi and his wife began, stating that during the raid by security forces on their home, the agents "blindfolded and gagged them" and "bound heavy chains to their feet." This account, titled "Forced Kidnapping" on Zahra Mousavi's account, relates to Zahra Rahnavard's narrative from February 25, 2011, when, following a call from protesters against "election fraud" for solidarity with the "Arab Spring," the two candidates protesting the results of the 2009 presidential election were placed under house arrest along with their spouses. According to Rahnavard's account, on that day, "masked and unknown men" attacked their home and after blindfolding and gagging them, threw them "into a remote basement." According to this account, after this action, the agents demanded that the two "repent." A point that, according to Rahnavard's writing, "this demand of the rulers is the refrain of this imprisonment and house arrest." In 2022, following widespread protests that began with the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the "morality police," Mousavi issued a statement calling for a transition from the Islamic Republic and the formation of a "Constituent Assembly" to determine the type of future government. The daughter of Mir Hossein Mousavi stated that he has been discharged from the hospital after being hospitalized due to "severe drug sensitivity." The house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard has now reached 5000 days. The son of Karroubi reacted to the renewed claims of "lifting the house arrest": the house arrest continues, and the conditions have become harsher.