\n<\/p>\n
BBC confirmed<\/u><\/a> that the couple\u2019s arrest came after they posted the video on social media.<\/p>\n CBS News reported that the Iranian state media outlet Mizan claimed<\/u><\/a> Haghighi and Ahmadi were not detained for dancing but for stoking resistance efforts in their Instagram posts by \u201cencouraging people to riot against the country and subversion.\u201d<\/p>\n Mizan disputed the 10-year punishment and claimed the couple received a five-year prison sentence for publishing “a call for protests.”<\/p>\n “It is clear that anti-revolutionary forces have falsely reported the charges by claiming each were sentenced to 10 years,” the Islamic Republic judiciary’s Mizan news agency said, reported Reuters<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cAstiazh Haghighi and Amir Mohammad Ahmadi had published a call for a rally on November 4 and called for riots on their Instagram pages,\u201d Mizan\u2019s statement reads, per CBS News. \u201cDuring the riots, they used their page to advertise calls, including the call for November 4.\u201d<\/p>\n The couple was individually sentenced by a Tehran court to prison for 10 years and 6 months each, for a total of 21 years combined, on counts of \u201cpromotion of impurity and indecency, assembly and collusion against national security, and propaganda against the regime,\u201d the Washington Post said<\/u><\/a> Wednesday. The couple have also been banned from social media and are not allowed to leave the country for two years. While their profiles remain public, there have not been posts on Haghighi\u2019s feed since Sept. 28, 2022. Ahmadi\u2019s last post was at the beginning of September.<\/p>\n Iranians have been protesting in growing numbers against the government\u2019s theocratic rule, and authorities have been cracking down. Much of the public dissent was sparked last year by the death of Mahsa Amini<\/u><\/a>, a 22-year-old woman who was arrested by Iran\u2019s morality police for the improper wearing of a hijab. Amini died days later in their custody.<\/p>\n Iranian officials have since arrested public figures who have spoken out against the government\u2019s reaction to Amini\u2019s death. This includes the arrests of prominent actor Taraneh Alidoosti<\/u><\/a> and celebrity chef Navab Ebrahimi<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n Haghighi spoke out in support of Amini in September. In an Instagram post, she wrote, \u201cHoping tomorrow will be a better tomorrow. Let’s hold each other’s hands and support each other. We are all Iranians and we need to help each other.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n