TEHRAN: An outspoken Iranian lawyer who has openly criticized how the government handled the 2022 protests that erupted after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini has been arrested, reported state media on Sunday.
Amini was detained by the police for not properly wearing her mandatory hijab. Her death sparked massive protests that quickly escalated into calls to overthrow Iran’s four-decade-old Islamic theocracy.
Mizan news agency reported that Mohsen Borhani has been arrested but did not give further details on his case.
Borhani, also a professor of university became popular on social media for his strong views of the Iranian government during the 2022 protests that killed more than 500 people and saw over 22,000 detentions.
Earlier United Nations (UN) investigators said Iran’s authorities were responsible for the physical violence that led to Mahsa Amini’s death.
The arrest came a day after Masoud Pezeshkian was elected as the new president of Iran. Pezeshkian vowed to ease implementation of the country’s mandatory headscarf law and reach out to the West after years of sanctions and protests squeezing the country’s economy.
