Top Iran filmmaker banned from travel after backing protests

TEHRAN: Iranian authorities have imposed a travel ban on leading filmmaker Masud Kimiai, local media reported on Monday, after he expressed support for protests that have gripped the Islamic republic for months.

Iran has seen a wave of demonstrations that erupted after the September 16 death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, an ethnic Kurd, following her arrest for allegedly violating the country´s strict dress code for women.

“The filmmaker, who wanted to go to the Netherlands on Sunday evening to participate in the Rotterdam film festival, was banned from leaving the airport,” the local Tehran daily Hamshahri said on its website. In a video on September 22, days after the protests broke out, Kimiai had said he was “standing with the people”.