Will 'missing' Iranian Athlete Elnaz Rekabi who competed without Hijab will be jailed?

Female Iranian rock climber Elnaz Rekabi, who chose not to wear a hijab in an international tournament in South Korea over the weekend, will be receiving a bitter welcome in Iran and will directly be moved to a prison facility from the country’s international airport, according to an exclusive report by IranWire. 

Rekabi recently gained prominence while competing in the final of the IFSC Climbing Asian Championship in Seoul, where she ditched the traditional headscarf as an act of defiance against Iran’s regime. Following the incident, reports of her disappearance started to emerge, with sources informing BBC’s Persian service that her mobile phone and passport were seized by Iranian authorities in Seoul. 

According to an exclusive report by anti-regime news website IranWire, the athlete, who will be taken directly from the Imam Khomeini international airport to Evin prison, was tricked by Iran's Climbing Federation head Reza Zarei. Zarei, at the behest of Iran's Olympic Committee chairman Mohammad Khosravivafa, had asked her to go to the Iranian embassy in Seoul, a source informed the outlet. 

Rekabi was allegedly tricked by Iranian authorities in Seoul

As per the anonymous source, the chairman had received orders from Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and moved Rekabi to the embassy on the pretext of safely heading back to Iran. "Elnaz made her decision to appear without a hijab around a month ago and knew that she was going to compete without the mandatory hijab," the source said, adding that Rekabi “did not seek asylum either because her husband is in Iran, and she wanted to return after the competition. She always makes such bold decisions. The team was supposed to get back to Iran, but suddenly they changed her plans.”

Zarei, who is a former member of Iran’s Ministry of Information, assured Rekabi that she would be safely flown back to Iran with minimal scrutiny if she hands her passport and mobile phone to the authorities. "We know what the embassies of the Islamic Republic do. They will take her directly to the airport and return her to Iran,” the source said. "People think that Elnaz will return with the team on Wednesday, but she is supposed to be returned to Iran a day earlier. We hope she can rescue herself at Seoul airport,” the unnamed source went on to say.

Iranian Embassy in Seoul reacts

In a tweet, the Iranian Embassy in Seoul dismissed “all the fake, false news and disinformation” regarding Rekabi’s departure on Tuesday. The Embassy even posted an image of her wearing a headscarf at a previous competition in Moscow, where she won a bronze medal.