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Abroad for the first time since the protests began in Iran: Ali Daei
Photo: Amirhossein Kheirkhah / IMAGO
He only had a supporting role, but one with great symbolic power: The Iranian national player Ali Daei has been supporting the protest movement in Iran for months - and was now on his first trip abroad as a guest at the Fifa world footballer elections.
The former Bundesliga professional from Bayern Munich, Arminia Bielefeld and Hertha BSC was on stage when the Fair Play Prize was presented to soccer professional Luka Lochoschwili in the Salle Pleyel.
The regime keeps taking action against him
Daei and his family have recently been repeatedly put under pressure by the Iranian authorities.
At the end of December, his wife and daughter were prevented from leaving the country.
The judiciary accused Daei's wife of showing solidarity with "counter-revolutionary" demonstrators during the latest wave of protests in the country.
Daei also showed solidarity with the demonstrators after the nationwide protests began in mid-September.
As a result, his passport was temporarily confiscated by the authorities.
Now Daei could show himself as a guest of the world association on the international football stage.
The most recent protests against the repressive government course and the Islamic system of rule in Iran had plunged the country's political leadership into one of the most serious crises in decades.
The trigger was the death of the Iranian Kurd Jina Mahsa Amini.
She died in police custody in mid-September after being arrested by the vice squad for violating Islamic dress codes.
ast/dpa