Iranian actress attacked in Kashan on way to screening

ILNA reports that Yahya was to be screened in Kashan on Sunday January 24 and Motamed-Arya and director Kaveh Ebrahimpour were to take part in a subsequent Q & A. The two were reportedly attacked as they tried to enter the cinema.

Ebrahimpour told reporters that the attackers numbered about 50 or 60 and were chanting slogans against Motamed-Arya and the film.

Motamed-Arya had been banned from travelling abroad since the presidential elections of 2009 and the ban was only lifted last November. Motamed-Arya's support for reformists candidates in the 2009 election and her appearance at a number of foreign film festivals without hijab (head covering) have been heavily criticized by conservative factions of the Islamic Republic.

Motamed-Arya and Ebrahimpour reportedly entered the cinema through the back door and conducted the Q & A after the film as planned, while the attackers continued their violent chants outside the building. Security forces reportedly prevented them from entering the cinema.

The two left the cinema at the end of the program under the protection of the security forces.

With more than 30 films on her resume, Motamed-Arya has won numerous acting awards, including the best actress prize at the Montreal Film Festival in 2011 for her role in Here without Me.