An Iranian news agency says authorities have confirmed that remarks by an economist critical of the government's subsidy cuts were the reason for his detention. The Sunday report by the semi official Mehr news agency quotes Abbas Jafari Dowlatabadi, Tehran's chief prosecutor, as saying Fariborz Raeis Dana was detained because he criticised the government's pricing program.
Last week fuel prices surged 400 percent and price of bread doubled because of subsidy cuts.