Iran Detains 5 Agents in Death of Photojournalist

Authorities detained five Iranian security agents in connection with the death of a Canadian journalist in police custody, state-run Tehran radio reported Saturday.

The officers were detained a day earlier after “comprehensive investigations” into the death of Zahra Kazemi on July 10, the report said, quoting a statement from Iran’s judiciary.

Kazemi, 54, died of head injuries and had complained before her death of abuse by guards, according to a report from a presidential committee.

The Iranian-born journalist, who lived in Montreal, was arrested June 23 while taking photos outside Evin prison, where many dissidents are held. Kazemi, who was working for the British agency Camera Press, had been authorized to cover pro-reform protests in Tehran, according to Iranian officials.

She was interrogated for 77 hours before being taken to a hospital, where she died two weeks later of her injuries.

The radio report did not identify the security agents who were detained, the agency where they worked or any details about their alleged involvement in the death except to say they were “in close contact” with Kazemi while she was in custody.

A judge was appointed Friday to lead a new inquiry into Kazemi’s death, the Tehran Prosecutor Office said.

Kazemi’s death has strained relations between Canada and Iran.

Iran summoned Canada’s charge d’affaires Saturday to protest the police shooting of an Iranian citizen July 14 in a suburb of Vancouver. Keyvan Tabesh, 18, was shot and killed by a plainclothes police officer. Canadian police said Tabesh ran at the officer waving a machete.

On Friday, Iran’s foreign minister accused Canadian police of criminal action.

Canada’s foreign minister responded by sending a diplomatic note to the Iranian Embassy outlining the “open and transparent” way Canadian investigations are conducted and urging the same treatment from Iran.