MARRAKESH, Morocco: Exiled Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani has condemned what she called a “massacre” in her homeland, which has been rocked by a wave of deadly protests.
Farahani, Iran’s first actress to star in a Hollywood film since the 1979 revolution, told AFP in an interview that the Iranian people were “suffering economically, politically and democratically.”
The United States said Thursday that Iranian authorities may have killed more than 1,000 people in a crackdown on demonstrations, after the government abruptly hiked fuel prices.
According to London-based human rights group Amnesty International, at least 208 people died in the protests that erupted on November 15.
“It’s a massacre, with hundreds of people dead,” Farahani said on the sidelines of the Marrakesh International Film Festival.
“I’ve learned not to dream when it comes to Iran. We cannot guess what will happen tomorrow.
“I didn’t expect the price of petrol to triple overnight. At the same time, I know that the people are suffering economically, politically and democratically. And when people suffer, it can explode quickly,” she said.
Iran has dismissed the high death tolls reported by foreign sources as “utter lies” and has so far confirmed only five dead — four security force personnel killed by “rioters” and one civilian.
Farahani — daughter of the acclaimed director Behzad Farahani — upset the Iranian authorities when she appeared in Ridley Scott’s spy thriller “Body of Lies” in 2008 alongside Leonardo DiCaprio.
She went into exile, first in the United States and then in France where she now lives.
“I realized that I preferred being in Europe, in the middle of the world,” she said.
“Being in exile is like being in an ocean. Your only choice is to swim or you’ll die.”
Farahani said she cannot return to Iran.
“Because of my films, because I’m a woman, for not wearing the veil,” she said.
“Everything I did when I left Iran became like a political act, when it was not the case,” she added.
“I wasn’t a politician or an activist. I was just an actress. A female actress. If I were a man I would have taken a different path.”
Exiled actress Farahani decries ‘massacre’ in Iran
Exiled actress Farahani decries ‘massacre’ in Iran
- Golshifteh Farahani: ‘It’s a massacre, with hundreds of people dead’
- Farahani upset the Iranian authorities when she appeared in Ridley Scott’s spy thriller ‘Body of Lies’
Art Cairo part of a ‘long-term cultural project,’ founder says
CAIRO: As Art Cairo 2026 draws to a close, its founder Mohammed Younis is keen to set the fair apart from its regional counterparts — and also asserts that the annual event is part of a “long-term cultural project.”
The fair, which took place at the Grand Egyptian Museum and wrapped up on Jan. 26, boasted a distinctly Arab flavor, in terms of galleries, artists and the themes of the artworks on show.
Younis says that is all part of a conscious curatorial effort.
“Art Cairo stands apart from other art fairs in the region as the only platform dedicated exclusively and intentionally to Arab art … While many regional fairs present a broad, globalized perspective, Art Cairo emerges from a different vision — one rooted in presenting Arab art from within,” Younis told Arab News.
Across the fair, depictions of golden age icons such as 1950s superstar Mohamed Mohamed Fawzy by painter Adel El-Siwi jostled for attention alongside ancient iconography and pop culture references from the Arab world.
Abu Dhabi’s Salwa Zeidan Gallery, for example, exhibited work by up-and-coming Egyptian artist Passant Kirdy.
“My work focuses on Egyptian heritage in general, including pharaonic and Islamic art. These influences are always present in what I create. This symbol you’re looking at is a pharaonic scarab … I’m very attached to this symbol,” she told Arab News.
The Arab focus of the curation is part of an effort to bill Art Cairo as a “long-term cultural project,” Younis noted.
“Ultimately, Art Cairo is not simply an art fair; it is a long-term cultural project. It exists to support Arab artists, contribute to building a sustainable art market, and articulate an authentic Arab narrative within the regional and international art landscape.”
