Vigil held at Iran embassy in Dublin over Bernard Phelan's detention

Human rights group Amnesty International calls for prisoner’s immediate release

Bernard Phelan, originally from Co Tipperary, was detained in the Iranian city of Mashhad last year. PA

Supporters of a man jailed in Iran have demanded his release at a rally outside the country’s embassy in Ireland.

Family and friends of Bernard Phelan, a French-Irish citizen who was first detained last year, held the vigil on Thursday, mark his 178 days in prison.

His 97-year-old father Vincent sat down outside the embassy, a walking stick at his side, as sister Caroline Masse Phelan demanded action. Banners urged Iran to release Mr Phelan.

Campaigners attending the protest held yellow flowers and symbols of the Women Life Freedom feminist movement in Iran.

They said Mr Phelan, 64, needs medical care that is not being provided in the Iranian jail.

Mr Phelan, originally from Co Tipperary, was detained in Mashhad last year.

He has denied a charge of helping to incite propaganda against the government in Tehran.

Mr Phelan was sentenced to six and a half years in prison by authorities last month, his family have said.

Vincent Phelan protesting outside the Iranian Embassy in Dublin. PA

Rights group Amnesty International called for his immediate release and raised concerns about the prison sentence.

“The authorities must also ensure that he is provided with regular phone calls to his family, access to a lawyer of his own choosing and unhindered regular consular assistance from the Irish and French,” Amnesty said on Thursday.

“He must also be provided with translations, including of key case documents, so that he is able to fully understand his rights.”

Mr Phelan was jailed during protests in which millions of people took to the streets after the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, 22.

Campaigners attending the protest held yellow flowers and banners. PA

He works for an Iranian tour operator, lives in France and was travelling on a French passport at the time.

He was stopped after taking a photograph of a mosque in Mashhad.

He has been allowed only three brief phone calls, one to his father and two to his sister, his family said.

Since 2017 he has travelled back and forth once a year to Iran and was promoting the country as a tourist destination.