Her family said on Friday that Iranian security forces arrested a woman after she and another woman ate in a Tehran restaurant without their head scarves was widely circulated online. The photo showed the two women having breakfast at a cafe that is traditionally patronized by men, like most coffeehouses in Iran.
One of the women in the photo, Donya Rad, was arrested shortly after the photo was published online. CNN spoke with her sister who said security agencies contacted Donya and summoned her to explain her actions.
After visiting the designated place, she was arrested, after a few hours of no news, Donya told me in a short call she was transferred to Ward 209 of Evin Prison. Her sister told CNN.com. Iran's Evin Prison is a notoriously brutal facility where the regime incarcerates political dissidents and is exclusively designated for prisoners managed by Iran's Intelligence Ministry.
CNN reached out to Iranian authorities about the alleged arrests.
Security forces have detained several influential Iranians, including the writer and poet Mona Borzouei, Iranian football player Hossein Mahini, and the daughter of former Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Faezeh Rafsanjani.
Iranian singer Shervin Hajipour was arrested this week after he released a poignant song based on tweets shared by Iranians expressing the sentiments of why people are protesting, according to NGO Iran Human Rights.
Hajipour's song For went viral online, received millions of views and is now shared widely among Iranians both inside and outside the country.
On Thursday, the headline read Celebrities of Disturbance, with a picture of former football player Ali Karimi standing next to prominent Iranian actors and actresses who have been vocal in supporting the protests. The article states that they are one of the main reasons for recent popular protests. We are not the ones who cause the disturbances. In an Instagram post addressing claims made by authorities, Iranian actor Ehsan Karamy said we are a drop from the people. You have to go after the hardliners who provided the firewood for this piece of fire. Hundreds of people have died in clashes between security forces over the past two weeks because of the government crackdown. At least 83 people, including children, have been confirmed to have been killed in protests after the death of Mahsa Amini, according to Iran Human Rights.
More than a thousand people have been arrested in the last weekend due to the protests, according to the state news agency IRNA. At least 28 journalists were arrested on Thursday, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Amnesty International said on Thursday they are investigating the authorities for mass arrests of protesters and bystanders, journalists, activists, lawyers, and human rights defenders, including women s rights activists and those belonging to oppressed ethnic minority groups. Videos circulating on social media show protestors calling for the fall of the clerical establishment in the cities of Qom, Rasht and Mashhad despite the growing death toll and a fierce crackdown by authorities.
CNN can't verify arrest or detention claims. A precise number of arrested or detained protestors is impossible for those outside Iran s government to confirm. Numbers vary by opposition groups, international rights organizations and local journalists.