Concerns are mounting over the fate of Azeri journalist and activist Ebrahim Savalan Rashidi, who has been in custody in northwestern Iran for more than two weeks.
No clear charges or reason for his arrest have been announced yet.
According to the Association for the Defense of Azerbaijani Political Prisoners In Iran, Rashidi's family received a 30-second phone call informing them of his transfer from the Ardabil Intelligence Detention Center to the city’s prison.
IranWire sources previously reported that he was arrested on December 30 during a raid by eight plainclothes agents on his parents' home in the village of Mirkandi.
The officers identified themselves as belonging to the Ardabil Intelligence Department, and did not present an arrest warrant.
Rashidi's electronic devices, books and other personal belongings were confiscated during the operation.
The journalist and activist was subsequently held in solitary confinement at the Ardabil Intelligence Detention Center.
In 2014, on the eve of International Mother Language Day, he was arrested for participating in a gathering of Azeri activists in the city of Ahar.
He was sentenced to one year in prison and released in 2015.
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