In a surprising move last week, Iranian authorities arrested a Russian journalist in the Caucasus region, accused of spying on behalf of Israel. They later agreed to release her after diplomatic pressure from Russia. But the move surprised observers, because Iran rarely takes actions unwelcome to Moscow.
The person in question is Yulia Yuzik, a journalist from 38 years with considerable experience in the Russian region of the Caucasus. His articles on the security situation in the Caucasus have been published in various Russian and Western stores. He has also written numerous books on Islamist militancy in the Russian Caucasus, which have been translated into several foreign languages, German, Italian and French.
In 2017, Yuzik spent several months in Iran as he worked on a series of stories. She returned to Russia before returning to Iran on September 29 this year, reportedly "for a private trip". According to media reports, Yuzik intended to meet a number of Iranian journalists she worked with in 2017. However, upon landing at Iran International Imam Khomeini Airport, Yuzik was blocked and her passport confiscated without explanation. Last Thursday she was arrested at her hotel in central Tehran by members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Yuzik's family, worried by the journalist's silence, asked for the intervention of the Russian Embassy in Tehran. Yuzik's family said the joint is accused of having collected information for the Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service. According to Russian media reports, the allegations against Yuzik took Russian diplomats by surprise, as Yuzik has no apparent connection with Israel, nor does he have a travel visa to enter that country. He reportedly spent a few days there in 2004 while writing a story on the Israeli defense forces for the Russian newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda.
Yuzik's family told the Russian embassy that the journalist was due to appear in a court in Tehran on Saturday. The Russian embassy held a press conference to reporters on Friday, saying that the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the Iranian ambassador to Moscow to complain about Yuzik's arrest. So, early Saturday, Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow, announced that Yuzik would be released soon.
