Sunni Imam Detained in Iran Without Warrant

Iranian intelligence forces raided the home of a Sunni Muslim cleric in the city of Zahedan on Monday and took him into custody.

According to reports from Baluch activist groups, Besmellah Khogiani, the imam of the Sediqi Mosque in Zahedan's Karimabad neighbourhood, was arrested by agents from the Intelligence Department without being shown an arrest warrant or informed of the charges against him.

His whereabouts remain unknown after he was taken away to an undisclosed location.

Khogiani had previously been arrested by Iranian security forces, part of a broader crackdown on Sunni clerics and activists in the Sistan and Baluchistan province since the eruption of nationwide Woman, Life, Freedom protests.

Several other Sunni clerics in the region as well as Kurdish areas have also been detained and given harsh sentences in recent months.

The Baluch Activists Campaign, which reported the arrest, quoted a source saying intelligence agents raided Khogiani's home and apprehended him without providing any legal justification.

No other details about the reasons for his arrest were available.