Iran confirms arrest of Iranian-American Reza Shahini
Iranian authorities and media released more information on the arrest and alleged activities of Iranian-American Reza "Robin" Shahini.
In July, Iran’s judiciary spokesman Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei confirmed to reporters that an Iranian-American citizen was arrested in the northeastern city of Gorgan. While Mohseni-Ejei did not confirm his name, many believed he was referring to California-based Reza “Robin” Shahini, who was visiting his mother in Iran.
The Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) confirmed Aug. 31 that a dual national was arrested in July and has been handed over to the judiciary. According to the IRGC statement, the individual — who they did not name — is accused of “cooperating with hostile governments, actions against national security and communication with anti-revolutionary agents and media.”
The following day, conservative news agency Fars News published specific accusations against Shahini. According to the report, Shahini, 46, had left Iran as a refugee 16 years ago, and had attended university in San Diego. The article accused him of having links to the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, anti-revolutionary groups and their media outlets.
The article published photos of Shahini meeting with Iranian opposition leaders, such as US-based Reza Pahlavi — the son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Iran’s last monarch who was dethroned by the 1979 revolution — and France-based Abolhassan Bani-Sadr, the first president of Iran after the 1979 revolution, who was impeached after his first year in office. The article also published pictures of Shahini participating in the 2009 post-election protests known as the Green Movement, a movement the Iranian authorities refer to as the “2009 sedition.” Iran accuses Western countries of orchestrating those protests to destabilize the country.
