Iran urged to release political cartoonist after detaining her again

Iranian authorities have summoned and arrested a cartoonist who has a history of being imprisoned for political posts on her Instagram account, her lawyer said Friday.

Mohammad Moghimi said in a tweet said his client, Atena Farghadani, a painter, cartoonist and former political prisoner, was summoned to the Evin courthouse in Tehran and arrested. He did not elaborate on why she was detained.

In 2016, Farghadani was released after spending 18 months in jail for portraying lawmakers as animals to criticize a draft law restricting contraception and criminalizing voluntary sterilization.

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On Wednesday, Farghadani posted one of her cartoons showing people with animal and satanic faces.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday that Iranian authorities must release Farghadani and stop efforts to silence commentators and members of the press.

“This cycling of journalists and commentators through prison is a continuation of authorities’ long-standing revolving door policy and a hallmark of Iran’s failure to respect the rule of law,” said Sherif Mansour, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator.