A woman holds up an Iranian Lion and Sun flag as people celebrate the death of Ayatollah Khamenei in Los Angeles. Photo: Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times
A group of Iranian students was detained in Moscow for celebrating the death of Ayatollah Khamenei after fellow nationals and the Iranian Embassy reported them to the authorities, according to the Telegram channel Ostorozhno, Novosti.
On March 1, several dozen Iranians gathered near the Russian capital’s Salaryevo metro station. Most of them were students at Moscow universities, including the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN). Ostorozhno, Novosti reported that most of them publicly criticized Iran’s theocratic regime and supported the mass protests that spread across their home country in January. The group met after news that Ayatollah Khamenei had been killed in U.S.-Israeli strikes against Iran on Feb. 28.
Police ultimately detained 45 people (although an official report listed only 21 participants in the “rally”). Some of them were taken into custody at the site, while others were detained the next morning during checks at student dormitories.
A participant in the gathering told Ostorozhno, Novosti that her friend was detained after a tip-off, and that fellow Iranians had likely seen invitations to the event posted on Instagram Stories and reported them to the embassy. She said detainees were asked to sign a confession and go through administrative proceedings. She insisted there was no rally and urged fellow Iranians:
“Please, even [if you want] to dance, don’t gather in groups in this country.”
Those detained were later released. The student said there were no real grounds for prosecution, as there had been no fight with police and no illegal gathering took place. However, Reyhaneh, a dentist with a Russian residence permit who invited fellow Iranians to the meeting, was handed 10 days of administrative detention.