Iran: Spanish national released after three months' jail time over protests

Iran has released a Spanish national who was arrested during the ongoing protests, having been detained for three months. This follows Tehran’s previous announcement that nine European nationals were arrested over their involvement in the protests.

Spanish foreign minister Jose Manuel Albares told journalists on Sunday that Spanish national activist Ana Baneira Suarez was released by Iranian authorities after being jailed for three months. Baneira was arrested for getting involved in the ongoing anti-government protests that Iran blames its foreign adversaries for fomenting.

“My congratulations for the release of Ana Baneira. She is in good health,” said Albares, who added that Baneira was released on Saturday and is expected to be on her way back to Spain on Sunday.

Albares said that another Spanish national, Santiago Sanchez Cogedor, was still detained in Iran and that he hoped for Cogedor’s release soon. Cogedor was arrested and detained by Iranian authorities on October 2 and is accused of espionage.

This follows Tehran’s announcement that its authorities have arrested nine Europeans for their involvement in the ongoing protests. The demonstrations have been taking place since September, triggered by the death of a woman named Mahsa Amini, who was arrested and detained by the morality police for allegedly violating the Islamic dress code for women. Amini died three days after her detainment, sparking the biggest challenges to Iran’s clerical regime since the 1979 Revolution.

Four people have already been executed for protest-related charges. Dozens have also been killed in Tehran’s crackdown on the demonstrations.

The French government said early this month that Iranian-French national Fariba Adelkah was also released, but it was unclear what the conditions were for her release. Adelkah has been detained since 2019 and was one of the seven French nationals Iran has detained and accused of espionage.

A statement by the French foreign ministry said they “welcomed” Adelkah’s release and added that the academic was “unjustly detained” in the notorious Evin prison.

Iran’s security forces have arrested foreign nationals mostly on charges of security and espionage. Human rights groups have accused Tehran of using arrests as diplomatic leverage to gain concessions from other countries.