Dissident journalist Mohammed Bagher Moradi was deported from Turkey to Iran despite his political refugee status. This was reported by the Persian service of Radio Liberty, citing sources familiar with his case.
Moradi disappeared in Ankara in May 2022. He left the house for the store and did not return. The next day, his car was found abandoned near his house. The journalist's family has filed an application to open a criminal case. Salih Efe, a lawyer representing her, said that Moradi was illegally detained in Turkey during this time. He also said that at that time the journalist was tortured.
In November, Ankara extradited Moradi to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). At the beginning of the month, he called his family and said that he was in the custody of "intelligence agencies" of Iran, RFE/RL sources say. According to them, Moradi said he had been transported to Iran a few days before the call. The IRGC unit that holds the journalist is notorious for its arrests of journalists, activists and dual citizens.
According to Radio Liberty sources, at the end of November, members of the IRGC interrogated Moradi's father. They said he should advise his son to make a live confession on Iranian television.
Moradi received refugee status in Turkey in 2014 after being sentenced to five years in Iran on charges of conspiracy against the state. His family's lawyer said Moradi's secret deportation to Iran was a flagrant violation of Turkish and international law, including the 1951 UN Refugee Convention.
