Ministry detains several journalists

Iran’s Intelligence Ministry detained several journalists outside Tehran for allegedly receiving money from abroad, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

The ministry said in a statement that the journalists, who were arrested in an unspecified province, allegedly confessed that they had received money from abroad to publish materials deemed to be against national security interests, IRNA reported.

The news agency did not say how many journalists were held or where the arrests occurred, but referred to the journalists as “separatists.” It also accused the United States of being behind plots to “sow discord among various ethnic groups.”