Khamenei's niece arrested after calling for foreign governments to cut ties with Iranian regime - CNN

CNN  — 

Farideh Moradkhani, the niece of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been arrested aft calling connected overseas governments to chopped each ties with the Iranian government.

Moradkhani was arrested connected Wednesday erstwhile she went to the prosecutor’s bureau successful effect to a tribunal order, according to a tweet from her member Mahmoud Moradkhani.

In a video connection shared by her member anterior to her arrest, Moradkhani called connected radical astir the satellite to impulse their governments to chopped ties with the Iranian authorities amid protests sweeping the nation, and to inquire their governments to “stop immoderate dealings with this regime.”

“Oh, escaped people, beryllium with america and archer your governments to halt supporting this murderous and child-killing regime. This authorities is not loyal to immoderate of its spiritual principles and does not cognize immoderate laws oregon rules but unit and maintaining its powerfulness successful immoderate imaginable way,” she said.

“Now successful this captious infinitesimal successful history, each of humanity is observing that Iranian people, with bare hands, with exemplary courageousness and bravery are warring with the evil forces,” she said. “At this constituent successful time, the radical of Iran are carrying the load of this dense work unsocial by paying with their lives.”

Farideh Moradkhani said Iranians are astatine warfare with governments who enactment the Iranian regime, and called connected antiauthoritarian countries to callback their representatives from Iran and expel the representatives of Iran from their ain countries.

“What is urgently needed is not to enactment this authorities that killed thousands of Iranians successful 4 days successful November 2019 portion the satellite was lone watching,” she added.

Farideh and Mahmoud Moradkhani are the children of Ali Tehrani, a cleric and longtime absorption fig who was joined to the ultimate leader’s sister Badri Hosseini Khamenei. Tehrani died past month.

Farideh Moradkhani has been arrested by the authorities before. She was arrested connected January 13 portion connected her mode home. Following her apprehension Iranian information reportedly searched Moradkhani’s location and seized immoderate of her belongings, according to quality rights organizations.

Iran’s ongoing protestation question was initially sparked by the decease of 22-year-old pistillate Mahsa Amini successful the custody of Iran’s morality constabulary successful September.

The unprecedented nationalist uprising has taken clasp of much than 150 cities and 140 universities successful each 31 provinces of Iran, according to United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Chief Volker Turk.

More than 14,000 people, including children, person been arrested successful transportation with the protests, according to Turk. He said that astatine slightest 21 of them presently look the decease punishment and six person already received decease sentences.

The convulsive effect of Iran’s information forces toward protesters has shaken diplomatic ties betwixt Tehran and Western leaders.

On Saturday, Khamenei praised the country’s Basij paramilitary unit for its relation successful the deadly crackdown connected anti-regime protesters.

Meeting with Basij unit successful Tehran connected Saturday, Khamenei described the fashionable protestation question arsenic “rioters” and “thugs” backed by overseas forces and praised “innocent” Basij fighters for protecting the nation.

The Basij is simply a helping of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and has been deployed to the streets arsenic protests person swelled.