Amini was pronounced dead on September 16, three days after he was arrested by Tehran’s morality police. Her family and protesters say she died from injuries sustained in a police beating. Iranian authorities say the initial forensic investigation showed he died of heart failure or a stroke. Activists say at least 36 civilians have been killed in a police crackdown since people took to the streets last week. Majid Tavakoli, an activist who has been imprisoned repeatedly in Iran in recent years, including after the disputed 2009 election, was arrested overnight at his home, his brother Mohsen wrote on Twitter. Another prominent Iran-based activist, Hossein Ronagi, was being interviewed by Iran International when security agents came to his home, the London-based channel reported. A video released by the channel shows Ronaghi looking worried but insisting that the interview continue. Iran International said the activist, who campaigns for freedom of expression and contributes to the Washington Post, managed to evade arrest by slipping out of his building’s parking lot and later posted a video message from an unknown location. Meanwhile, Nilufar Hamedi, a journalist from Tehran who went to the hospital where Amini was in a coma and helped expose the case to the world, has been arrested, the Shargh daily, for which she works, wrote on Telegram. Photojournalist Yalda Moaiery was also arrested while covering protests in Tehran this week, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday. “Iranian authorities must immediately release all journalists arrested for covering the death of Mahsa Amini and the protests that followed,” said CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator Sherif Mansour. Anti-regime protests intensify after death of Mahsa Amini in Iran – video Activists had accused Iranian authorities of being in the midst of a crackdown even before the protests began, with two of the country’s most acclaimed filmmakers, Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulov, arrested. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi told a news conference on the sidelines of the UN general assembly in New York on Thursday that Amini’s death “must be firmly investigated”, while criticizing what he claimed were Western “double standards” for Human Rights. “Our highest concern is to ensure the rights of every citizen,” Raisi said. “If her death was due to negligence, it will certainly be investigated and I promise to follow up on the matter regardless of whether the international forums take a stand or not.” Raisi, a hardliner who was in charge of the judiciary, said Iran would not tolerate “acts of chaos”, referring to the six nights of protests. Raisi tried to change things in the country he was visiting by asking about police shootings in the US. “Were all these deaths investigated?” he said. Iran’s judiciary ordered the courts to take a hard line with the protesters, arguing that the protesters were being led by foreign agents and incited by anti-Iranian social media – a familiar accusation leveled by the regime when dissent erupts. The extent of the unrest in Iran, the worst in years, remains unclear, though it has undoubtedly increased in the days since Amini’s death. Security forces and paramilitary forces have been deployed to quell protests in more than 12 cities. On Thursday, protesters set fire to police stations and vehicles in several cities, and Iran shut down the internet in parts of Tehran and Kurdistan province and blocked access to platforms such as Instagram and WhatsApp. On Friday, Iran’s military said it would “confront the enemies” to ensure security – the harshest warning yet to protesters. Amini was arrested for allegedly wearing a hijab in an “inappropriate” manner. As part of the protest action, Iranian women have taken to the streets and online to burn their headscarves and cut their hair. Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
