Mehdi Mahmoudian was released from an Iranian prison on bail.
Oscar-nominated co-writer arrested after protest statement.
Vida Rabbani and Abdollah Momeni also freed.
Mehdi Mahmoudian, released from an Iranian prison, has drawn international attention, coming just weeks after his arrest in Tehran. The Oscar-nominated co-writer of It Was Just an Accident was freed on bail after spending 17 days in custody, according to local media reports. Two other signatories of the same public statement, Vida Rabbani and Abdollah Momeni, were also released.
Mahmoudian had reportedly signed a statement criticising Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and condemning the state’s violent crackdown on protesters. Soon after, he was detained and later transferred to Nowshahr prison. No detailed information about formal charges has been made public.
Why was the Oscar-nominated co-writer arrested?
The statement he endorsed questioned the authorities’ handling of nationwide protests and accused the regime of suppressing dissent. In response, officials reportedly accused the signatories of insulting the supreme leader and spreading propaganda against the Islamic Republic.
Director Jafar Panahi, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mahmoudian, Nader Saeivar and Shadmehr Rastin, criticised the arrest. He stated that peaceful expression had been treated as a national security issue and described the charges as a long-standing method used to silence critics.
Who is Mehdi Mahmoudian?
Mahmoudian is a writer and political activist with a history of imprisonment. He previously served a five-year sentence that ended in 2014 on charges linked to actions against the regime. During one of his earlier jail terms, he met Panahi, who has also faced detention and house arrest.
Their collaboration led to It Was Just an Accident, a revenge drama inspired partly by Panahi’s own experiences in prison. The film has earned Academy Award nominations for best original screenplay and best international feature as France’s submission.
Mahmoudian and the two other activists were released from Nowshahr prison on bail earlier this week.
