Iranian footballer Furiya Ghafouri arrested amid scrutiny of the World Cup

Iran’s World Cup team nodded silently to the protests at home

Iran’s national team refused, during a match against England on Monday, to sing during the playing of the country’s national anthem, in what was widely seen as a silent acknowledgment of the protests. Iran’s national radio showed selected images of spectators cheering for Iran during the match, but not the political references that some carried.

Protests began in Iran in September after the death of a young Kurdish woman, Mohsa Amini, in police custody. The uprising against Iran’s clerical leadership has spread across the country and sparked a fierce and deadly crackdown, including in ethnically Kurdish regions, where human rights groups say scores of people have been killed in recent days.

The Human Rights Council of the United Nations in a vote Launched on Thursday Investigation In alleged human rights violations in Iran’s response to the protest movement. “Today’s hearing leaves no doubt that members of the Human Rights Council understand the seriousness of the situation in Iran, and that the fact-finding mission established today will help ensure that those engaged in the ongoing violent oppression of the Iranian people are identified and their actions documented,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken he said in a statement.

Rights groups say Iran is stepping up its crackdown in the Kurdish regions

Al-Ghafouri, who is Kurdish, has criticized government officials on social media in the past, and recently posted messages on Twitter condemning the killing of Kurds. Iranian news reports did not specify the reasons for his arrest but said the charges included “spreading propaganda against” the Islamic Republic.

He has been called up to play several times over the past decade with the national team, and has played for several Iranian teams including Foolad Khuzestan, his current team. On Thursday, the semi-official Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) reported that Hamid Reza Qoreshabi, the team’s CEO, had resigned, and said that the reason for his resignation had not yet been announced.

Even before the World Cup kicked off, some Iranians called on FIFA, soccer’s global governing body, to ban the national team, known as Team Melle, as a sign of support for the protests. Others have argued that Iran’s attendance at the World Cup was a boon for the uprising: a high-profile event that provided players and spectators with an opportunity to voice their dissent, with international media watching.

Iran are preparing to face Wales on Friday.