TEHRAN — A Canadian-Iranian professor researching women in the Muslim world has been arrested by Iranian intelligence officers, the latest in a series of detentions of Iranians holding dual citizenship.
The professor, Homa Hoodfar, was initially detained on March 10 by the intelligence unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and was then released, but she was not allowed to leave Iran.
After a series of interrogations, Hoodfar, a professor of anthropology at Concordia University in Montreal, was arrested again last week and transferred to Evin prison, her family said in a statement released Wednesday.
The family said that it was unclear why Hoodfar had been arrested and that she had been “conducting historical and ethnographic research on women’s public role.”
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Analysts say the recent arrest of Hoodfar and others seems to be part of a concentrated effort by hard-liners to pressure dual citizens. Hard-liners distrust foreigners, especially dual citizens, who can travel into Iran without visas.
In recent months, the unit that arrested Hoodfar has questioned dozens of people with two nationalities and arrested several.