Intelligence Ministry forces arrested filmmaker Saleh Deldan and a journalist, Zeynab Karimian, on January 23.

Prior to the arrest, in December 2016, Intelligence Ministry agents searched the home of Deldan and accused of him of “acting against national security” and “propaganda against the regime,” but stopped short of arresting him. Intelligence officials – both government-linked and those working on behalf of the Revolutionary Guards — have regularly interrogated the filmmaker, who is a member of Iran’s Marodmsalari Party (the Democracy Party of Iran), over the last seven years, often in connection with his political activities. He was also arrested in the aftermath of the 2009 disputed election, along with hundreds of political activists and journalists.

During a press conference, government spokesperson Mohammad Bagher Nobakht said he didn’t have any information about the arrests

The website Kalameh reported that Karimian, a former reporter for Mehr and the Islamic Republic news agencies, is a known supporter of Hassan Rouhani, so it is unclear why the president’s intelligence staff would want to target her.

Reporters asked government spokesperson Mohammad Bagher Nobakht about the arrests at his weekly press conference on January 24, but Nobakht refused to shed any light on the matter.

“I don’t have any information. You should ask the intelligence minister,” he said.

Kalameh also reported the arrest of another journalist, Tahereh Riyahi, on December 26. Authorities have not provided any information about where she is being held or the reason for her arrest.