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WEKU
WEKU
The Associated Press

Iran arrests a soccer player for criticizing government and insulting the soccer team

Iranian soccer player Voria Ghafouri (right), then a member of the national soccer team, fights for the ball with Iraqi midfielder Hussein Ali during the AFC Asian Cup soccer match in Dubai in 2019. The semiofficial Fars and Tasnim news agencies reported on Thursday that Iran arrested Ghafouri for insulting the national soccer team and criticizing the government. (Kamran Jebreili/AP)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran arrested a prominent former member of its national soccer team on Thursday over his criticism of the government as authorities grapple with nationwide protests that have cast a shadow over its competition at the World Cup.

The semiofficial Fars and Tasnim news agencies reported that Voria Ghafouri was arrested for "insulting the national soccer team and propagandizing against the government."

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