A record-breaking Iranian footballer who supported anti-government protests says his wife and daughter were prevented from leaving the country after their plane made an unannounced stop.
Ali Daei, 53, said his wife Mona and daughter’s flight was stopped after they left Tehran to join him on holiday in Dubai. They were taken off the plane on Kish island, an Iranian territory in the Persian Gulf, and quizzed by officials whilst the plane left without them before they were released.
Daei, who had held the world record for scoring 109 times for Iran - before Cristiano Ronaldo broke his record in 2021 - had planned to travel to Dubai and return next week.
Daei, who played for Bayern Munich and Hertha BSC during an illustrious playing career, is one of several Iranian celebrities to come out in support of protests ignited by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September. She died after being arrested by Iran's morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating the country's strict dress code.
Protests spread across the country and escalated into calls for the overthrow of the theocracy. At least 507 protesters have been killed and more than 18,500 people have been arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran.
The Tasnim news agency, believed to be close to the Revolutionary Guard, said a travel ban was imposed on Daei's wife earlier this month because of her support for the protests.
It claimed her final destination was the US and it is believed they may still be in Kish, whilst Daei’s campaigns for their return.
He said: “My daughter and wife were taken off the flight but they were not arrested. Had they been banned from flying the passport police system would have shown it.”
Daei added that his wife and child were planning to return to Tehran after a few days in Dubai. The former Iran captain, had taken to social media to urge the government to "solve the problems of the Iranian people rather than using repression, violence and arrests". His passport was later returned.
Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign adversaries like the US and Israel. Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it had arrested seven individuals involved in the protests with a "direct link" to Britain.
