Iranian authorities have arrested one of the country’s most famous actors, Taraneh Alidoosti, who is best known for her role in Oscar-winning film The Salesman.
Alidoosti was arrested on charges of “spreading falsehoods” about the protest movement that has spread throughout the country, according to state media.
Alidoosti was detained a week after she made a post on Instagram expressing solidarity with Mohsen Shekari, who was executed earlier this month.
He was hanged by authorities after they accused him of being a rioter who blocked a main road in Tehran in September and wounded a member of a paramilitary force with a machete.
“His name was Mohsen Shekari,” Alidoosti said in her post. ”Every international organization who is watching this bloodshed and not taking action, is a disgrace to humanity.”
According to state media, Alidoosti was arrested because she did not provide ’’any documents in line with her claims.″
In November, she attracted attention after posting an image of herself on Instagram without a headscarf in support of the country’s anti-government protests.
She starred in Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman, which world premiered in Competition at Cannes in 2016 and went on to win an Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.
Her other film roles include 2022 Cannes entry Leila’s Brothers, Farhadi’s About Elly, Fireworks Wednesday and The Beautiful City, and Rasoul Sadrameli’s I’m Taraneh 15, which earned her the best actress award at Locarno.
Iran has been gripped by protests since the death in September of Mahsa Amini, who died after being detained by the morality police.
At least 495 people have been killed in the demonstrations amid a harsh security crackdown, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group that has been monitoring the protests since they began. Over 18,200 people have been detained by authorities.
No comments yet