Iran is One of the World's 10 Largest Jails for Journalists

The "Human Rights Campaign in Iran" reports that at least 34 journalists and media activists have been arrested by the Islamic Republic since the beginning of this year. Among these, at least 7 journalists, including Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi, who were detained for reporting on the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police, are currently in prison. Investigations by this human rights organization also reveal that since January 1, 2023, more than 281 legal cases have been filed against journalists, reporters, and media activists. The Human Rights Campaign in Iran, on the occasion of the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, has reported based on evidence from inside Iran that Islamic Republic officials take arbitrary actions to suppress and intimidate journalists, such as deactivating their phone SIM cards or blocking their bank accounts. A human rights lawyer residing in Iran told this human rights organization that these are methods that are "impossible" to prove in court or any judicial authority for the victim, as they use "insidious and security" methods to destroy the individual's daily life, and no responsible official is held accountable for them. Hadi Ghaemi, director of the Human Rights Campaign in Iran, has called on the international community to take a "clear and specific" action against the "transnational suppression of journalists" by the Islamic Republic. Behnam Darayizadeh, a journalist and senior researcher at this organization, states that in addition to the "systematic and serious threats" from the Islamic Republic against journalists inside Iran, reports from intelligence agencies in Western countries, including the United States, Britain, and Canada, indicate that journalists and media activists abroad have also been under threat and pursuit by agents of the Islamic Republic, often without their knowledge. In March 2023, documents released during the hacking of the judiciary's websites revealed the issuance of absentia sentences for several journalists outside Iran, including reporters from the Persian section of Voice of America, on charges of "propaganda against the Islamic Republic." Furthermore, see: Exclusive; The U.S. State Department's reaction to the issuance of absentia sentences for Voice of America journalists: The Iranian government is known for its "media suppression." United Nations experts announced in June 2023 that at least 15 "proven plots linked to the Islamic Republic" to kill or abduct individuals have been carried out in Britain over the past two years. Additionally, in November of this year, a senior official of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and three other men connected to the Iranian government were charged by U.S. prosecutors in New York with participating in the failed assassination plot of Masih Alinejad, a journalist and host of the Tablet program on Voice of America, in 2022. Exclusive: The U.S. is reviewing the case of a dual-national prisoner in Iran. The U.S. has accused a senior IRGC official of involvement in the assassination plot against Masih Alinejad. Tens of thousands have called for the suspension of the sentences of two journalists; the judiciary's insistence on executing the sentences. The Journalists' Guild: The prison sentences of Hamedi and Mohammadi should be suspended. Saeedeh Shafiei, a journalist suffering from illness, has been returned to prison. The "Defense of Free Information Flow in Iran" organization states that the conviction of journalists has increased "fivefold" in one month.