Turkish Activist Arrested in Iran for Social Media Post on President Raisi's Fatal Helicopter Crash

Hengaw, Monday, May 20, 2024

A Turkish individual identified as Akbar Yousefi from Malekan, East Azerbaijan Province, was arrested by the security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran after publishing a post about the helicopter crash involving President Ebrahim Raisi and his diplomatic corps.

According to a report received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, on May 20, 2024, officers from the Intelligence Department raided the private residence of Akbar Yousefi, a Turkish social activist from Malekan, and violently detained him.

Sources close to Yousefi’s family stated that he was arrested and taken to the Malekan Intelligence Detention Center after posting on his Instagram account about the recent helicopter crash that resulted in the deaths of President Ebrahim Raisi and other high-ranking officials.

As of the time of this report, no specific charges have been brought against Yousefi.

It is noteworthy that Yousefi had previously been arrested by Iranian security agencies during the Woman, Life, Freedom (Jin, Jiyan, Azadi) movement.

The helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi crashed on Sunday, May 19, 2024, in the border highlands of Iran and Azerbaijan, resulting in his death. Alongside President Raisi, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mohammad Ali Al-Hashem, Khamenei’s representative and the Imam of Tabriz; and Malek Rahmati, the Governor of East Azerbaijan Province, also perished.