Iranian cultural figures condemn internet blackout as ‘blatant tool of repression’

Jafar Panahi, Mohammad Rasoulof and Golshifteh Farahani among those to join outpouring of support for protesters

The Iranian film-makers Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof have condemned the internet blackout in their country as a “blatant tool of repression” intended to conceal violence against protesters, amid an outpouring of solidarity from artists in the diaspora.

Panahi, a Palme d’Or-winning film-maker who the Iranian regime sentenced last month in absentia to a year in prison for “propaganda activities”, and Rasoulof, a prominent film-maker who fled Iran in 2024 while appealing against a prison sentence and now lives in exile in Europe, posted a joint statement on social media on Saturday.

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This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.