Iran ends 14-year house arrest of reformist Mehdi Karroubi

Dubai — Iranian officials ordered the release of opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi on Monday after 14 years of house arrest for protesting against the results of presidential elections.

Karroubi’s political ally, former prime minister Mir Hossein Mousavi, would also be released from house arrest in the coming months, Karroubi’s son Hossein told Jamaran, a semi-official newspaper linked to moderate political factions.

Karroubi, now 87, and Mousavi, 83, ran on a reformist platform in the 2009 vote that returned hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power and triggered mass rallies by protesters who said the results were rigged.

Both were detained in 2011 after taking a leading role in the protests, though they were not put on trial or publicly charged.

“Security officers met my father and said his arrest would be lifted today on orders of the head of the judiciary,” Hossein Karroubi was quoted as saying by Jamaran, referring to Monday. He said his father had been told that security officers would be present at his home until April 8 to ensure his protection.

Iran’s official news agency, IRNA, also reported on Karroubi’s release, but did not refer to Mousavi’s case.

Hossein Karroubi told Ensaf news in 2024 his father would not accept any move to lift his house arrest while Mousavi was still detained. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had promised during his election campaign to release both politicians.

Reuters