Norway confirms detention of its citizen in Iran
Norway’s foreign ministry on Monday confirmed the detention of one of its citizens in Iran, a spokesperson for the ministry told Iran International.
Norway’s foreign ministry on Monday confirmed the detention of one of its citizens in Iran, a spokesperson for the ministry told Iran International.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is aware that a Norwegian citizen has been arrested in Iran, but due to our obligation to respect confidentiality we cannot provide further details," the spokesperson said.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises against travel to Iran," the spokesperson added.
The ministry did not provide additional information, including the identity of the detainee or whether the person holds dual nationality.
On Sunday, US-based rights group Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that an Iranian–Norwegian dual national was detained after being summoned to the Intelligence Ministry office in Saqqez, in Iran’s western Kurdistan province.
HRANA identified the woman as Shahin Mahmoudi, whose name the rights group said appears as Shine Mahmoudi in Norwegian identity documents.
Mahmoudi was summoned by phone to the Intelligence Ministry office in Saqqez last Sunday and was detained around noon after reporting to the security body, HRANA said.
She was later transferred to the Intelligence Ministry’s detention center in the nearby city of Sanandaj.
According to HRANA, authorities have not informed Mahmoudi’s family of the charges against her.
Her relatives remain unaware of the reasons for her detention, her health condition, and the status of legal proceedings in her case, according to HRANA.
Mahmoudi had traveled from Norway to Iran on November 28, a move that was followed by her detention and the opening of a judicial case against her, according to the report.
The report comes just days after Sweden confirmed that one of its citizens was detained in Iran, after the country's judiciary disclosed details of a case involving an Iranian-Swedish dual national accused of spying for Israel.
