Transfer of Hossein Fereydoun from Prosecutor's Office to Hospital

Fars and Tasnim news agencies reported that Hossein Fereydoun, assistant and brother of the Iranian president, was taken out of the Tehran Prosecutor's Office by an ambulance just hours after being transferred there on Monday, July 26. According to Fars, Fereydoun was moved to the Tehran Prosecutor's Office for 'further investigation into his case,' but 'only hours after this presence, due to health issues, he was taken out of the Tehran Prosecutor's Office by an ambulance.' Tasnim also wrote: 'Fereydoun's general health was poor from the moment he entered the prosecutor's office, and ultimately, due to the deterioration of his physical condition, the interrogation session was not held and the accused was taken out by ambulance.' The reports did not provide details about these health issues. Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesperson for the judiciary, announced on Sunday, July 25, the arrest of Hossein Fereydoun, assistant and brother of Hassan Rouhani, the president of Iran. He stated that Fereydoun was unable to secure his bail on Saturday evening and was therefore introduced to 'prison.' He added that there was no plan for 'temporary detention' and that he would be released if he could secure bail. In this context, Fars news agency quoted 'some informed sources' stating that 'the charges against Hossein Fereydoun, which have not yet been proven, amount to more than 50 billion tomans in total.' Meanwhile, the Khabar Online website, close to Mir Hossein Mousavi, one of the leaders of the protests against the 2009 election results, reported that Hossein Fereydoun is detained by the Intelligence Organization of the IRGC. According to news agencies, the judiciary spokesperson in his Sunday press conference described the charges against Fereydoun as 'financial issues' and stated that this matter 'has nothing to do with banking arrears.' Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei added that 'several investigations have been conducted regarding the brother of the Iranian president, and individuals related to the case have also been investigated. Some individuals are in custody.' The emergence of some financial allegations against Hossein Fereydoun has been raised by media and principlist figures for the past two years and peaked during the 12th presidential election campaign. In the third round of the candidates' debates, Ebrahim Raisi, Hassan Rouhani's rival, addressed him, saying: 'Mr. Rouhani, you know me; I do not speak empty words; this issue of corruption among your close associates was discussed by the first deputy of the judiciary and the attorney general in your office, and complete documents and evidence were provided to you that the closest person to you is facing million-dollar problems.' He advised Rouhani: 'If I were you, I would facilitate legal action; it was said that not taking action now or questioning it is not compatible with the spirit of someone who is the head of the government.' Several principlist members of parliament have accused Hossein Fereydoun of having connections with Rasoul Danialzadeh, an individual reported by some news websites in Iran to be a major bank debtor who was arrested on January 25, 2017. On February 1 of last year, Akbar Ranjbarzadeh, a member of the parliamentary board of directors, announced that Hossein Fereydoun had protested in a letter to the Speaker of Parliament against the allegations attributed to him by some parliament members. On January 5, 46 principlist representatives in a letter accused Fereydoun of 'economic corruption' and requested Hassan Rouhani to introduce his brother to the judiciary.