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Last update - 19:42 13/12/2008
Iranian blogger who visited Israel arrested for spying
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: israel news, iran 

Hossein Derakhshan, the Iranian blogger who visited Israel in 2007, was recently arrested in Teheran upon his return from Canada. Iranian authorities claimed that the blogger, who also holds Canadian citizenship, admitted to being involved in espionage for Israel, the Iranian news Website Jahan News reported Monday.

Jahan News is affiliated with the Iranian intelligence community. Some believe that the report regarding Derakhshan's confession aims to prepare the ground for his execution.

The report, citing "credible sources", revealed that Derakhshan's confession included several "intricate" points. The site noted that Derakhshan attended various conventions in Israel, and quoted Haaretz and Jerusalem Post articles stating that Derakhshan is a friend of Israel.
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Following his visit to Israel last year, there was a change of tone in Derakhshan's blog posts, which had previously been supportive of Israel. Derakhshan even commended Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad occasionally, and recently expressed his support in the arrest of several Iranian citizens on political grounds.

Iranian expert Meir Javedanfar wrote Tuesday that prior to his return to Iran, Derakhshan criticized former Iranian president Ayatollah Hashemi-Rafsanjani and added that his arrest may be the result of power struggles within the Iranian regime.

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      1.   israeli spy 21:40  |  jack 18/11/08
      2.   this fool can`t possibly be a spy 22:01  |  bob 18/11/08
      3.   o my 00:15  |  jane 19/11/08
      4.   Why travel to 00:50  |  Faris Zaidan 19/11/08
      5.   Poor guy 02:20  |  Shmidlap 19/11/08
      6.   HE IS A SPY 09:14  |  indrajaya 19/11/08
      7.   least he visited Israel :) 12:01  |  elinor from Iran 19/11/08
      8.   Hes IRI spy 12:50  |  amir 19/11/08
      9.   To Indraya the brightest mind in this place #6 13:01  |  Iguana Pacheca 19/11/08
      10.   Hey jack of Florida! 13:36  |  Guantanamo 19/11/08
      11.   please 15:46  |  Farhad 19/11/08
      12.   Spy? no way 19:23  |  Ellen 19/11/08
      13.   And now, Ladies & Gentlemen. A blogger spy. 22:47  |  Stephen. 19/11/08
      14.   Indrajaya - here is the difference - second try 22:56  |  David Israel 19/11/08
      15.   visiting Gaza 07:00  |  Paymun 20/11/08
      16.   Israeli Arabs Traveling Back and Forth 19:33  |  Jamal 22/11/08
      17.   Israeli Spy 03:15  |  DW Duke 25/11/08
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