Leaders of Iran’s 2009 Green Movement protests will be arrested from the House of Representatives, a son says
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (AP) – His son told state media on Monday that one of the leaders of the 2009 Green Movement protests in Iran will be released in the coming weeks. However, previous speculations he would be released, but it was not implemented.
Shia pastor, parliament president and two-time presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi have been held in his home since the Arab Spring protests in 2011.
His son Hossein Karroubi told National IRNA News that security officials told the father that he would be released in early April. He did not identify officials, but said Iran’s judiciary had issued orders.
No orders were immediately admitted about Karroubi, a 80-year-old.
Mehdi Karroubi, who supported Mir Hossein Mousavi’s 2009 presidential candidacy, was arrested in 2011 when he called for demonstrations during the Arab spring to support protests in Egypt and Tunisia. State media have been ordered not to discuss them or display their images.
In 2009, Karroubi gathered with the public during a massive protest against the controversy accusing the presidency of the tough Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The protests attracted millions of people into the streets and triggered a fierce security crackdown as protesters quickly demanded the overthrow of Iran’s Shiite theocratic and supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.