The family of Lebanese citizen Nizar Zakka, who was arrested in Iran in 2015, has said that a video report was recently broadcast on Iranian state television framing him.
It said in a statement on Tuesday that Zakka has been moved to a Revolutionary Guard prison from Evin prison in Tehran.
According to the statement, the video was a clear attempt by Zakka’s “kidnappers” to convince the Iranian public that the detention was justified, despite “the Iranian presidency’s request for his release.”
The video begins with images of the Sept. 11 attacks, and of Zakka with Premier-designate Saad Hariri, before claiming Zakka was working as an agent for the US.
It also shows him attending international conferences as the head of international non-government organization IJMAA3.
But the family statement said the video was based on “lies and fabrications.”
His relatives said they were convinced that Zakka’s “systematic torture” and recent transfer was an attempt to extract a false confession.
Zakka was arrested after traveling to Iran to attend a state-sponsored conference. At the time of his arrest, he was the secretary-general of IJMAA3 and had received an official invitation to visit Iran.
