Aussies held in Iran Mystery surrounds arrest of blogger, boyfriend and lecturer

TWO Australian- British women and an Australian man have been detained in Iran and are being held in a notorious prison in the capital Tehran.

A British-australian blogger, her Australian boyfriend, and a British-australian university lecturer are believed to have been taken in separate incidents and are being held in the capital’s Evin jail.

The arrests were confirmed yesterday by

Government.

“The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing consular assistance to the families of three Australians detained in Iran,” a spokesperson said.

The blogger was arrested 10 weeks ago on charges that remain unclear, the UK Times newspaper reported, while the academic, who had been workthe Australian ing at an Australian university, has been given a 10-year sentence.

While the charges against her also remain unclear, 10year terms are routinely given in Iran for spying charges, the paper reported.

The couple had reportedly been documenting their travels on Youtube and Instagram, but concerns were raised by their online followers when they failed to add any new posts in the past several weeks.

BBC Persian reported a woman and her Australian partner were detained by members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in Jajrood in Tehran province.

The couple had reportedly been camping in a military area, the site reported.

On Monday the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade updated its travel warning to Iran to specifically state that Australians should reconsider travelling to Iran because of the risk that foreigners “could be arbitrarily detained or arrested”.

“We can’t guarantee access to consular services or legal representation if you’re detained or arrested,” the statement on the Smart Traveller website read.