Fatemeh Hosseini, Sociologist, Arrested in Mashhad

News sources in Iran reported on Thursday, July 6, that Fatemeh Hosseini, a sociologist and social researcher, was arrested by the IRGC intelligence agents at Mashhad Airport while returning from a trip. Hassan Younesi, a lawyer, tweeted that Fatemeh Hosseini was arrested on "Tuesday." The reason for this has not been disclosed, but some sources suggest that her arrest is part of a series of detentions of activists and users of the Clubhouse social network. In recent weeks, several Clubhouse users in Iran, including Sayeh Seydal, Daniel Amin, Sarvnaz Misaqian, and Alireza Abdi, have been arrested. Additionally, Alireza Abdi, a Clubhouse activist, was arrested when agents attacked his home in Tehran. The arrest of these citizens occurs while some political activists close to the government are continuously active on Clubhouse, hosting programs including an online speech by Mohammad Javad Zarif, the former foreign minister of the Islamic Republic, on this platform. Kambez Ghafouri, a journalist residing in Finland, told Voice of America that programs like Zarif's appearance on Clubhouse do not happen "without permission" and are pre-coordinated. According to this analyst, Zarif has "obtained permission" and his presence on Clubhouse is related to the elections.