Two French nationals were indeed arrested this month in Iran, the Iranian authorities confirmed on Tuesday (May 17th), accusing them of having tried to provoke unrest by meeting with representatives of teachers' unions.

Iranian state television broadcast footage of the two, a 37-year-old woman and a 69-year-old man, from their arrival in the Islamic Republic on April 28 on tourist visas until their arrest on April 7 may.

"The Ministry of Intelligence monitored the two people in organizing and coordinating meetings with some people who consider themselves to be members of the teachers' union," state television said, adding that they were "trying to form some kind of protest to create trouble."

In an audio file broadcast by the media, a female voice, presented as that of the arrested French national, affirms in English: "It's a battle to obtain the majority of Iranians".

And a man, believed to be the second national arrested, says, also in English: "We should build a revolutionary 'package'".

>> To read also: Frenchman sentenced in Iran: "We are making Benjamin Brière a political instrument"

The Iranian Ministry of Intelligence announced on May 11 the arrest of two Europeans accused of seeking to "destabilize" the country, without specifying their nationality.

The next day, the French Foreign Ministry said they were two French people, without identifying them, and condemned the arrests as "unfounded", calling for their immediate release.

The Iranian authorities are holding several foreign nationals prisoner for reasons deemed political by Western countries, which consider that Tehran is using them as a means of pressure in negotiations on the Iranian nuclear issue or to loosen the grip of international sanctions.

Dozens of teachers arrested

Iran is currently rocked by regular protests by teachers against their working conditions.

Several of them were arrested, leading to other demonstrations for their release.

Earlier this month, the NGO Human Rights Watch demanded the release of nearly 40 teachers arrested during the events surrounding the May Day nationwide protests.

Iran education union leader Rasoul Bodaghi was sentenced to five years in prison in April for his involvement in teacher protests, according to a human rights organization.

On Monday, the Mehr news agency announced the arrest of a university researcher suspected of having "committed acts undermining national security".

Professor of sociology at Allameh Tabatabai University in Tehran, Saïd Madani Ghahfarokhi, 61, is "suspected of maintaining links with foreign countries and of having committed acts threatening the security of the country", indicated the agency. , without further details.

Many events 

Hit since 2018 by major US economic sanctions, Iran is experiencing galloping inflation of more than 40%, which is hitting officials hard.

Last week, Tehran announced a series of measures, including lifting subsidies on flour and raising the prices of certain foodstuffs such as oil and dairy products.

Hundreds of people then took to the streets in several Iranian cities to demonstrate, notably in the province of Tehran, according to the official Irna news agency.

In recent years, many protests have taken place in the country demanding better living conditions and higher wages, including in November 2019 after a rise in fuel prices.

According to the authorities, 230 people were then killed in violence linked to the demonstrations.

Experts working for the UN evoke a death toll of 400.

With AFP

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