Iranian philosopher and writer Ramin Jahanbegloo has been arrested in Tehran on unspecified charges.
Liberal cleric Mohsen Kadivar told journalists Wednesday of the arrest, at a gathering of writers in Tehran called to mark World Press Freedom Day.
A deputy Tehran prosecutor told Iran's Student News Agency that Jahanbegloo was being held in Tehran's Evin prison. Political dissidents are often held and sometimes tortured at the notorious facility.
An unnamed judiciary official is quoted in the Iranian newspaper Etemad-e-Melli as saying charges against Jahanbegloo will be announced after interrogations.
Jahanbegloo, educated at the Sorbonne in Paris and Harvard University in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, holds dual citizenship with Canada. He heads the department of Contemporary Studies at the Cultural Research Bureau in Tehran.
He has lectured on the prospects for democracy in Iran, and authored books on Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi and liberal political philosopher Isaiah Berlin.
Some information for this report was provided by Reuters.