[News Figures] Former Iran National Football Player Buria Ghafoori Arrested After Criticizing Government

Buria Gapuri. (Photo by AFP) [Image source=AFP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Amid anti-government protests continuing for two months in response to the 'Iran hijab suspicious death' incident, former national football player Buria Ghafoori, who made critical remarks against the government, has been arrested by authorities.

On the 24th (Korean time), British daily The Guardian and others reported that Ghafoori was arrested on charges of spreading anti-government propaganda.

Ghafoori, a former national football player and captain of Iran's prestigious football club Esteghlal FC, recently posted on his social media criticizing the Iranian authorities to stop the massacre of Kurds.

He pointed out, "Stop the massacre of Kurds. The Kurds are Iran itself... Killing Kurds is like killing Iran," and bluntly stated, "Turning a blind eye to killing people is neither Iranian nor human."

The 35-year-old Ghafoori, despite his brilliant career and national popularity as a national team player in the 2015 Asian Cup and the 2018 World Cup, was unable to participate in this year's Qatar World Cup.

Foreign media interpreted this as a deliberate exclusion from the national team selection because he is from the Kurdish minority (Sanandaj) in Iran and has voiced criticism of the regime.

In the past, he was referred to a disciplinary committee on charges of criticizing former Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. He was also disciplined by authorities for distributing uniforms in honor of Sahar Khodayari, a woman who self-immolated after being imprisoned for watching a football match in 2019.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In Iran, nationwide anti-government protests have spread since last September after Iranian woman Mahsa Amini was taken by police for not wearing her hijab properly and died under suspicious circumstances.

During the government's crackdown on the protests that have lasted over two months, more than 300 people have died due to harsh suppression, and warnings from the international community continue.

Earlier, during the first match against England in the Qatar World Cup held on the 21st, Iranian national football team players staged a silent protest by not singing the national anthem.

The Guardian interpreted this as the Iranian authorities warning their players not to repeat the silent protest ahead of the match against Wales on the 25th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.