Protesting Iran stars 'under surveillance from secret agents' at World Cup

Protesting Iran stars 'under surveillance from secret agents' at World Cup,The Iranian players garnered the admiration of the world for their defiant stand against their government before their opening clash against England in the World Cup

Protesting Iran stars ‘under surveillance from secret agents’ at World Cup

Players of the Iran national team are ‘under surveillance from secret agents’ loyal to the country’s clerical leaders, according to a prominent human rights activist.

The players expressed solidarity with protesters in their home country by not singing the national anthem before their 6-2 loss to England in their first match of the World Cup. On November 22, the United Nations claimed 40 more people have been killed during the ongoing demonstrations that began when 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini died in the custody of the so-called ‘morality police’.

Team captain Ehsan Hajsafi recently expressed support to the demonstrators, while Iran manager Carlos Queiroz was also under huge pressure not to take Bayer Leverkusen ace Sardar Azmoun, after he spoke out against the regime. And human rights organisations have warned the rest of the squad are also under constant surveillance from officials, who have gone out to Qatar as supporters or individuals within the international set-up.

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The football world has expressed concern about the fate of the Iranian players who have spoken out in support of the demonstrations (Image: Martin Meissner/AP/REX/Shutterstock)

“It was a very brave act by the players not to sing the Islamic Republic’s anthem, and we have to understand their situation,” Maziar Bahari, the founder of Journalism is not a crime said to the Metro. “Many of them are people from poor or working class backgrounds who have reached this level of success through hard work.

“From what we know, many security agents have accompanied the team to Qatar, including as spectators and as part of the team. They can easily send reports to their masters in Tehran, so the players can be arrested if they go back to Iran.

“Some of the football clubs are run by Revolutionary Guard commanders so they can decide not to renew or cancel a player’s contract. They can also easily create a situation where a player ends up in jail. There is at least one former football player who was outspoken in support of the protestors who is in prison now.

Demonstrations are still prevalent in Iran (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

'Agents' close to president Ebrahim Raisi are reportedly feeding back information about the Iranian players (Image: Iranian Presidency/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)

‘The head of the Iranian Football Association, Mehdi Taj, is a former Revolutionary Guard commander, so the players and the manager, Carlos Queiroz, will be under a lot of pressure to stay away from politics. At the same time, the players are seeing their friends and relatives killed across Iran, so it is not easy for them to put politics aside and just concentrate on playing football.”

More than 300 people are believed to have been killed ever since the protests began in September. Before the World Cup, the Iranian football association banned their players from speaking out against the government or in support of the demonstrations.

Various human rights organisations have expressed their worry and concern for the players after the competition, particularly the nine in the 26 man squad who play their football in Iran.