Iranian soccer star Ali Daei, who backed protests following the death of Mahsa Amini, accused Tehran on Monday of diverting a flight carrying his wife and daughter to Dubai to prevent them from leaving the country.
State media confirmed that Ali Daei’s family had been banned from leaving the country because of their “association” with anti-government groups.
Ali Daei’s wife and daughter boarded Tehran on a Mahan Air scheduled flight bound for Dubai, but they were forced to leave the aircraft. This last would have been confused on the Iranian island of Kish, in the Gulf, said the 53-year-old sportsman quoted by the ISNA agency.
“No one gave me an answer about this incident. I really don’t know what the reason for this decision is. My wife and daughter were going to Dubai for a few days,” he added.
Passport confiscated in October
Iranian justice had already sealed in early December the jewelry store and the restaurant of the footballer, accused of having joined the strike calls launched by the demonstrators after the death of Mahsa Amini last September. She had been arrested by the vice police for failing to adhere to the country’s strict dress codes.
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The former attacker also told AFP last October that his passport had been confiscated by the police on his return from abroad, before being returned to him a few days later. He also says he is the target of threats since he supported the protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini.
Another much younger footballer, Amir Nasr-Azadani, 26, faces the death penalty after his arrest in the protests in Isfahan. He was reportedly found guilty of “armed rebellion against the state or the Islamic Republic”, which the regime denies.
>> Read also: Iran publicly executes man linked to protest movement
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