Foreigners targeted

Two students arrested at Russian university

Symbolic image

(Bild: Alexander Blinov stock.adobe)

Two Iranian students have been brutally arrested in the south-western Russian city of Kazan, where the BRICS summit was recently held. Originally, they only wanted to extend their visa for a semester abroad at the university ...

When you study in Russia as a foreigner, the educational institution usually takes care of unpleasant bureaucratic matters, such as the quite complex visa extension. Unsuspectingly, two Iranian students went to the relevant cabinet at the university in Kazan for precisely this reason. There, however, they were beaten in an "inhumane" manner, IRNA reported, citing a statement from the Iranian consulate in Kazan.

Semester abroad with pitfalls
It is not yet clear why such disruptions occurred. However, it is suspected that the students were downright harassed with bureaucratic requirements. In general, the office responsible for foreign students is not characterized by efficient work, writes the Russian online portal "Echo". The BRICS summit only made things worse: many international students were only able to enter Russia in November and then had to queue at the university from 2 a.m. to get an appointment to complete their documents. Some were not even able to do this. They had to sign an agreement that forced them to return to their country of origin and wait there again for an invitation for their visa.

The police in Kazan only explained on the online service Telegram that an argument between students had escalated and officers had then arrested the "instigators". According to the regional investigative committee in Kazan, two foreign citizens were detained because they had used "violence against a representative of the authorities".

The arrest was caught on camera:

Tehran appeared furious
Iran then angrily sent a "protest note" to the Russian Foreign Ministry condemning "violent treatment of the Iranian students by the police", the Iranian news agency IRNA reported on Saturday. After the consulate intervened, the two were released on Friday evening. Tehran reportedly demanded an explanation for the incident.

The Iranian ambassador in Moscow, Qasem Jalali, even said on X that Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi had repeatedly dealt with the incident. In another post, the ambassador condemned "any misconduct towards Iranian students" and called for the responsible Russian authorities to be held accountable. The escalation is somewhat surprising, as Russia and Iran are actually allied states.