Arya Jafari, Iranian photojournalist set to shoot World Cup arrested

A World Cup photographer from Iran who was set to start his "dream" assignment has apparently been detained and imprisoned in his own nation.

Arya Jafari, a photojournalist, was detained on September 25 at his residence, according to the human rights organization Journalism is Not a Crime.

According to The Metro, Jafari was jailed to prevent his pictures of the Iranian protesters from being published and distributed worldwide.

Since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in police custody, Iranians have persisted in their demonstrations against the country's Islamic leadership.

On September 13, Amini was detained by morality police in Tehran for allegedly breaking the country's severe laws demanding that women cover their hair with a hijab, or headscarf.

Amir Hosseini, a friend and coworker of the photographer, first announced Jafari's detention on Instagram.

Hosseini explains that Jafari had spoken with him prior to his detention and informed him that he was scheduled to fly to Qatar in time for the World Cup Opening Ceremony.

“The good news was that after all these years of photography and effort, he was going to achieve his dream and go to the World Cup as a photographer,” writes Hosseini in the Instagram post.

“I was happy with all my heart that he was finally going to get what he deserves.”

Jafari was previously detained by Iranian authorities in 2014 after documenting the protests against acid assaults in Isfahan, which were brought on by a string of attacks on women.

Jafari's most recent tweet, which was dated September 21, was a retweet of a picture of Iranian street protests.

Prior to the World Cup, the photographer appears to have shifted his attention to Iranian football, according to his Instagram feed.

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