Anniversary of Mahsa: Reporters Without Borders: 79 Iranian Journalists Arrested During 'Widespread Repression' of Protests

Reporters Without Borders announced that the Iranian government has arrested 79 journalists, including 31 female reporters, during the 'widespread repression' of protests over the past year. In a report released ahead of the anniversary of the death of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini in the custody of the morality police, this international organization described Iran as one of the largest prisons for female journalists and labeled the arrests of journalists covering the protests as 'arbitrary' and the charges against them as 'baseless.' According to this report, currently, 12 of the arrested journalists, including 5 female reporters, remain in prison, and released journalists face restrictions. Reporters Without Borders stated that the reason for the arrest of these 79 journalists is 'unknown' and that their main charge is 'propaganda against the regime,' with some facing additional charges such as 'participating in illegal gatherings,' 'conspiracy against national security,' and even 'collaboration with hostile governments.' The organization called the charges against Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi, journalists who covered the news of Mahsa Amini's death, 'baseless.' These two journalists are currently imprisoned on charges of 'collaboration with the hostile government of the United States,' 'gathering and conspiring to commit a crime against national security,' and 'propaganda activities against the regime.' According to Reporters Without Borders, 24 out of the 79 journalists arrested last year have been sentenced to punishments ranging from 6 months to 6 years, and a few of them have received 'token pardons.' Human rights defenders have described the government's pardon of some protesters last winter as a propaganda and showy act. The report states that the judicial system of the Islamic Republic has issued suspended sentences for most of the released journalists and silences them by imposing 'a constant fear of punishment.' Reporters Without Borders noted the 'complex repression' of journalists in Iran, stating that Iranian journalists residing abroad are also not safe from threats from the Islamic Republic officials, and sometimes their close relatives are subjected to 'arbitrary detention.' Reporters Without Borders currently reports that there are 24 imprisoned journalists in Iran, including 12 journalists arrested during last year's nationwide protests. According to the 'Committee to Protect Journalists,' Iran was named the 'worst jail for journalists in the world' in 2022. Nazila Maroufian was arrested with 'beating and assault' by agents one day after supporting Mahdi Yarahy, and Hossein Yazdi, a critical journalist, was arrested again. Three imprisoned female journalists in Iran won the UNESCO Press Freedom Prize, and Parisa Salehi, a journalist from the Donya-e-Eqtesad newspaper, was summoned to the prosecutor's office. The International Federation of Journalists condemned the sentencing of two journalists in Iran.