Last month Ali Karimi, the former Iranian attacking midfielder, who now lives in exile in Dubai received a request from a well-known countryman for advice on how to defect. Karimi, known as the Asian Maradona in his playing days, nearly took the bait. Karimi was to meet the ‘celebrity’ in Fujairah, a port city in the United Arab Emirates. At the last minute, just before he headed out, Karimi received a message on his phone about the meeting being a trap.
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The sequence of events can form a part of the script for a triller. Karimi, 44, has been a long-standing critic of the Iranian government but his support for the anti-hijab protests has made him a No.1 target. The Iranian government has issued an arrest warrant against him.
Karimi’s friend Mehdi Rostampour narrated about the failed attempt to force the former Bayern Munich footballer back to Iran. The plan, according to Rostampur, was to take Karimi by boat to Iran from the port city of Fujairah.
“I thank my countrymen who are worried about my humble self. I and my family have been threatened and are threatened in various ways. But I am not important. I still mourn my countrymen across Iran and all my pain and sorrow is the safety of the people in my homeland,” Karimi said after the plot, reportedly hatched by the intelligence unit, was exposed.
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The identity of the person who alerted Karimi is still unclear.
“He received a text from a friend saying ‘Fujairah is a trap’. Who was the sender? Someone from within the intelligence ministry,” Rostampour wrote.
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همه مردم ایران،
فردا یکشنبه در حمایت از مردم بیدفاع مهاباد به خیابانها بیایند.#مهاباد #مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/4NIPxjAeL1— ali karimi (@alikarimi_ak8) November 19, 2022
The kidnapping attempt was first reported by The Times in London. The protests against Iran’s hardline government began in September after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who was detained by the Gasht-e-Ershad or the guidance patrol, a morality policing wing. Her crime was that she was not wearing the hijab properly.
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The protests have spread to over 140 cities and according to Iran Human Rights, over 300 protestors have been killed by security forces, including 43 children and 25 women.
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On the field, members of the national team have put their careers at risk at the World Cup. Karimi, the arguably greatest footballer Iran has produced, played 127 matches and scored 37 goals. He couldn’t take the risk of making the trip to Qatar, but the Iranian team in solidarity with the protests back home didn’t sing the national anthem before their Group B game against England, one they lost 6-2.
Ahead of their first game, the Iranian captain spoke in a manner that would have made Karimi proud. Hajsafi was vocal during the pre-match press conference.
“We have to accept the conditions in our country are not right and our people are not happy,” he said. “We are here but it does not mean we should not be their voice or we must not respect them. Whatever we have is from them. We have to fight. We have to perform and score some goals to present the brave people of Iran with a result. I hope conditions change as to the expectations of the people.”
Hajsafi’s words will inspire many back home, just like Karimi’s has over the years.
Karimi first rubbed officials the wrong way when he started raising his voice about alleged mismanagement in the national team way back in 2008.
“These things have become something normal in our football. In the 10 years that I have been part of the national team, things have never been so bad. I hope these problems are solved soon, but the officials need to know that they can not solve these problems by just talking,” Karimi had said.
He was dropped and banned from the national team but was soon back after being reinstated at the behest of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah.
However, Karimi was to remain a throne in the flesh of authorities. A year later, Karimi and a few of his team mates wore green wristbands during a World Cup qualifying match in Seoul. The significance of the colour was that it was used during the campaign of opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who had disputed the election results and hundreds of his supporters were detained.
What followed was another ban for Karimi and the players who decided to wear the wristband. Karimi, Hosein Ka’abi, Vahid Hashemian and Mehdi Mahdavikia were ‘retired’ following the game.
These days Karimi’s outspoken posts have given the government a real headache. With 14 million followers on Instagram, where he posts regularly, his voice is not easy to suppress. He has been charged with ‘assembly and collusion with the intention of acting against national security’ in absentia. Karimi can be depended on to raise issues and with over 12 million followers.
In 2017, when the movement to allow women to watch football matches gained momentum, Karimi didn’t mince words.
“This is the demand of millions upon millions of female fans who’d like to watch soccer matches and other events up close,” Karimi told an Iranian news agency. “This important issue is not impossible, this dream of female sports fans can be achieved through correct planning.”
In 2018, 35 women were temporarily detained when they tried to enter the Azadi stadium to watch a game between Esteqlal and Persepolis. None other than FIFA president Gianni Infantino was present at the stadium, according to multiple reports.
Iranian women were allowed to watch football from stadiums in 2019 after Fifa raised the possibility of suspension.
However, the latest anti-hijab protests have been the strongest against the regime since the Islamic revolution in 1979.
In September, IRNA news agency reported that former footballer Hossein Mahini had been arrested after he had tweeted support for the anti-government protests.
Following the arrest, Karimi had posted on Instagram a photo of Mahini with the wordings ‘with honour’
Another Iranian great Ali Daei, who was part of the officials promotions for the World Cup, took a stand and decided to turn down an invitation from FIFA to attend the World Cup.
“In these days when most of us are not feeling well, I answered no to the official invitation of FIFA and Qatar Football Federation to attend the World Cup with my wife and daughters, to be with you in my homeland and express my sympathy,” Daei posted on Instagram. Karimi, Daei and Mahini have a huge fan following, including on social media and have made the regime uncomfortable by standing in solidarity with the protestors. By not singing the national anthem when being watched by millions on live telecast, the current national team has taken forward the legacy of outspoken footballers.
