Iranian security forces have arrested prominent human rights lawyer and activist Nasrin Sotoudeh at her home in Tehran, also confiscating her computers and phones. The operation took place last evening, with no details provided about her whereabouts.
"We just learned that our mother was arrested last night while she was alone," her daughter, Mehraveh Khandan, wrote on Instagram. "When relatives went to the house, we discovered that electronic devices, including our mother's and father's laptops and phones, had been confiscated. Mom has not yet been in contact, and we have no information about the agency that carried out the arrest."
Just two days earlier, Sotoudeh had openly criticized the Iranian regime, making her arrest appear as part of a growing crackdown on activists and women's rights. The 62-year-old Sotoudeh has been one of the most prominent defenders of women's and human rights in Iran. She has been arrested several times in the past: in 2019, she was sentenced to 33 years in prison and 148 lashes for her activities, while in 2023, she was imprisoned during protests against the mandatory hijab but was later released on conditional terms.