(Tehran) Iranian authorities have arrested two filmmakers accused of ‘disturbing public order’ for encouraging protests after the deadly collapse of a building in the country’s southwest in May, the news agency reports. Iranian Irna.
Posted at 12:24 p.m.
Overseas award-winning Mohammad Rasoulof and his colleague Mostafa Aleahmad were arrested on Friday, according to the official agency, for “encouraging demonstrations and disturbing public order and the safety of the population, while the city of Abadan was living a heartbreaking drama”, in reference to the collapse of a building on May 23 which killed 43 people.
The Metropol building, under construction in Abadan, one of the main cities of the province of Khuzestan, in the south-west of the country, partially collapsed in the heart of a busy street.
This disaster, one of the deadliest in years in Iran, has led to a series of demonstrations across the country in solidarity with the families of the victims and against the authorities, accused of corruption and incompetence.
The organizers of the Berlinale film festival, which awarded Mr. Rasoulof the supreme distinction two years ago, protested against these arrests and demanded the release of the two artists.
We are concerned about the arrests of Mohammad Rasoulof and Mostafa Aleahmad. It is tragic that artists are imprisoned for their peaceful commitment against violence.
Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian, directors of the Berlinale
In Iran, protesters called for “incompetent officials”, responsible for the tragedy, to be tried and punished. During the protests, Iranian police used tear gas, fired warning shots and made arrests.
Led by Mr Rasoulof, a group of Iranian filmmakers published an open letter in late May calling on security forces “to lay down their arms” in the face of anger over “corruption, theft, incompetence and repression”, which led to the collapse of the building.
Mohammad Rasoulof, 50, won the Golden Bear in Berlin in 2020 for his film ‘The Devil Doesn’t Exist’, but he couldn’t make it to Germany. His passport had been confiscated after his previous feature film in 2017 “A Man of Integrity”, presented at Cannes, where he won the prize in the “Un Certain Regard” category.