Oct 23, 2008 8:58 pm US/Pacific
Cal State Northridge Student Detained In Iran
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) ―
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Cal State Northridge student Esha Momeni was arrested in Iran while researching her master's thesis.
CBS
Cal State Northridge is calling for the release of a 28-year-old graduate student who is jailed in Iran to visit family and research women's rights.
Esha Momeni, a student at California State University, Northridge, was driving on a highway in Tehran when she was stopped by authorities who said they were traffic police, the London-based Amnesty said.
Iranian officials said Momeni was arrested Oct. 15 for a traffic violation. But Amnesty said in a statement Tuesday she was taken to her family's home where her computer and other materials related to her research on the Iranian women's movement were confiscated.
Momeni, who is a member of the California branch of Change for Equality -- an Iranian women's rights group -- was later taken to Evin prison, the Tehran facility notorious for holding political prisoners, Amnesty said.
Her family was told by an Iranian court on Monday that her case was still being investigated, and no details would be released until after the probe was completed, Amnesty said. The group says her family has not been allowed to visit her and authorities have refused to accept bail.
Iranian judicial officials have not commented on the case.
In Washington, the State Department said it was aware of reports of Momeni's arrest and was seeking more information.
"We stand with all those in Iran who are working for universal human rights and justice in their countries," deputy spokesman Robert Wood told reporters Wednesday.
Amnesty said dozens of other activists and supporters have been arrested in Iran in connection with their activities with the Change for Equality campaign, launched by Iranian women activists in September 2006.
The campaign is seeking to collect a million signatures in support of changing laws that deny women in Iran equal rights in matters such as divorce and court testimonies.
Momeni's arrest comes about a year after several Iranian-Americans accused of stirring up a revolution were released from Evin prison after spending months in detention. All four denied the accusations.
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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