Japanese Ambassador in Tehran Briefly Detained This May

The Japanese embassy in Tehran reported on Sunday, August 31, that Hiroyasu Kobayashi, the ambassador of Japan to Tehran, was briefly detained four months ago while attending an Iranian party where alcoholic beverages were present. According to Japanese media, including the Japan Times and Kyodo News, this incident occurred on April 28 (9th of Ordibehesht) and other foreign diplomats were also present at the party alongside the Japanese ambassador and his wife. The report states that agents raided the party during dinner, disregarding diplomatic immunity, and interrogated some attendees, including the Japanese ambassador. The Japanese embassy in Tehran has officially protested this action, which it considers a violation of Mr. Kobayashi's diplomatic immunity, in a letter to the Iranian Foreign Ministry at that time. The report also indicates that the ambassador did not have the special photo identification card issued by the Iranian Foreign Ministry for diplomats with him, and although he showed his personal identification card, he was still questioned by the agents. Additionally, the agents prevented the participants from leaving the venue for a period and did not allow them to use their mobile phones. Government and judicial sources have not yet responded to this report. It remains unclear why the Japanese embassy in Tehran has reported on the incident after four months. The Japanese ambassador had presented his credentials to Hassan Rouhani on October 27 of the previous year. On August 1 of this year, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, announced that a house in Tehran, which he claimed was prepared for hosting a 'mixed gathering' for some foreign diplomats and related Iranians, had been discovered. He stated that 'four thousand liters of alcoholic beverages' were found in this house, and two Iranians with dual citizenship were also arrested. The Tehran prosecutor noted that this was the second house discovered in the past two months. He described these actions as 'organized' and called for 'intelligence oversight' by judicial authorities over 'all centers prepared for corruption,' including gardens and halls. Meanwhile, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesman for the judiciary, mentioned in August without providing details that staff from some embassies had participated in 'parties' and were making arrangements. In June, he defended the flogging of several students for participating in a 'mixed night party' in Qazvin, stating that the judiciary had 'evidence and indications' that such 'parties' were organized by a specific faction. In recent months, reports of arrests of individuals in various cities in Iran for participating in 'mixed parties' and 'consuming alcoholic beverages' have increased, with reports of the detention of several young people in Tehran, East Azerbaijan, Hormozgan, Mazandaran, and Kerman provinces.