How Iranian FA tried BANNING our journalist from reporting a World Cup warm-up match
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Iran’s latest chilling attack on free speech: how ayatollahs tried to FORBID our reporter from covering a World Cup warm-up match after the latest hijab protest over the death of a woman in police custody
- MOS reporter Ian Herbert told he couldn’t attend Iran vs Uruguay football match
- Ban lifted at 11am after Iranian FA came under pressure from football authorities
- During Friday ‘s game , two men were sent off for holding a picture of Mahsa Amini . held
- Protests have erupted across Iran and around the world after Ms Amini .’s death
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Iran tried to block a Mail on Sunday reporter from attending an international football match on European soil in a chilling attack on freedom of expression.
Match organizers in Austria told reporters that the decision to ban them was “taken by the Iranian Football Association” amid attempts by the authoritarian state to suppress coverage of widespread protests.
The ban was lifted at 11 a.m. after Iran’s FA came under pressure from football authorities to allow journalists and fans into the match – a friendly between Iran and Uruguay.
During the match, peaceful protesters were removed from the stadium with frogs by Austrian police for demonstrating against the death of a 22-year-old Iranian woman who had been taken into custody.
Postman Ian Herbert said: ‘I’ve been writing about sports for 15 years and no one has ever tried to keep me from a competition.
‘How dare they deny journalists access to a football match on European soil? Our investigation showed that this was clearly an act of the Iranian state. It wasn’t until we met the team’s Portuguese manager that they changed their tone and let us in.
Stadium police and security personnel approached two men and asked them to hand over a placard bearing a photo of Ms. Amini that read: ‘A 22-year-old Iranian girl was murdered on September 16 by the police of the Islamic Republic of Iran’
Protests have erupted in Iran and around the world following the death of Ms Amini, following her arrest by the state vice squad for wearing a headscarf “inappropriately”. Pictured: A protest in Istanbul on Tuesday
“The expulsion of two supporters who held up just an A4 image of Mahsa Amini on Friday night was a disgrace. The local police are now in a bind and trying to justify being thrown out of the ground.
“I expect bigger protests if Iran plays another match in Austria on Tuesday evening. This is a disgrace to Austria, which is hosting Iran for a World Cup preparation camp.
“This bodes extremely badly for Iran ahead of a World Cup in Qatar, where their opening game will be against England.”
Protests have erupted across Iran after the death of Ms Amini, following her arrest by the state vice squad for wearing a headscarf ‘inappropriately’.
Her death has rekindled anger in the fundamentalist Muslim nation, and angry mobs of women have gathered across Iran, publicly burning veils and cutting their hair in a show of defiance. The protests are expected to continue throughout the World Cup.
The two protesting fans were sent off during the first half of Iran’s 1-0 win over Uruguay. The competition was held in the city of St. Polten.
The stadium’s police and security personnel approached two men and asked them to hand over a placard bearing a photograph of Ms. Amini, which read: ‘A 22-year-old Iranian girl was murdered on September 16 by the police of the Islamic Republic of Iran. ‘
When they refused, the men were marched out of the stadium, with footage showing a man being pushed toward the exit by three police officers and at least one guard while declaring his right to protest peacefully.
The death of Mahsa Amini (pictured) has reignited anger in the fundamentalist Muslim nation and angry mobs of women have gathered across Iran, publicly burning veils and cutting their hair in a show of defiance
The match was to be played behind closed doors as the Iranian government feared further protests in full view of European spectators, but pressure from football authorities reversed this at 11pm and allowed around 400 fans to enter.
Shahin Gobadi, of Iran’s National Council of Resistance, said: “The free world must be on the side of the Iranian people. It should enable the Iranian diaspora to expose the atrocities of the mullahs and condemn this cruel censorship.”
Austrian police spokesman Raimund Schwaigerlehner said the protesters left the stadium “voluntarily” and emphasized there was “no intervention on the part of Iranian government officials”.
He said: ‘In Austria, the freedom to protest is an important right. But the meeting must be registered with the competent authority.’
Gary Neville’s shock at workers’ quarters
Gary Neville is visibly shocked by the poor living quarters for World Cup workers when he is shown official accommodation in a documentary to be screened tonight.
Neville criticizes immigrant workers’ wages of about $275 (£250) a month – and many survive on $55 (£50) a month after sending the rest home to their families.
In Countdown To Qatar on Sky Sports Premier League, which airs tonight at 9.30pm, Neville says of working conditions: ‘It’s just inequality you wouldn’t believe. It’s really staggering. This is not a house.’
Gary Neville was shown around accommodation facilities in a new Sky Sports documentary
Neville expresses serious concern about workers’ wages. “If that were my son, my daughter, my brother, I wouldn’t want them in this position.”
The former Manchester United and England player – expected to be an ITV pundit for the World Cup – has not previously condemned human rights violations in Qatar.
In an interview with David Beckham on Neville’s YouTube show, The Overlap, he was criticized for failing to address the issues of racism and persecution of women and homosexuals in the Middle East. Beckham to be paid up to £150million to be World Cup ambassador.