Iran begins vetting expatriates seeking to return, group says

Bloomberg

By Ladane Nasseri

Iranian intelligence officials have begun reviewing requests of exiles interested in returning home, the New-York based International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reported.

President Hassan Rouhani, elected last year after pledging to ease his country’s isolation and grant Iranians more freedoms, has invited citizens overseas to come back. While there are no confirmed data on expatriates, numbers jumped following the 1979 Islamic revolution and a crackdown on street protests after the disputed 2009 election.

A committee of intelligence officials has been set up to screen expatriates seeking to return, the advocacy group said, citing an interview with Deputy Foreign Minister for Consular and Parliamentary Affairs Hassan Qashqavi by the Tadbir news website. Qashqavi said he attends the panel’s meetings, without elaborating on its work.

Many Iranians remain abroad because of concerns “induced by Iranian opposition groups,” the group quoted Qashqavi as saying in earlier comments. “Many of these fears are self-made,” Qashqavi said. They have “no roots.”

The Tadbir report didn’t say how many expatriates have petitioned to return.

While Rouhani’s government has agreed to an interim nuclear accord with world powers, winning relief from some international sanctions, he’s yet to deliver on his domestic agenda.