Journalist Fined; Hadi Kasai-Zadeh: 'I Was Imprisoned Next to the Toilet'

Hadi Kasai-Zadeh, the editor-in-chief of the monthly 'Meydan Azadi', has been fined 20 million tomans for 'spreading falsehoods with the intent to disturb public opinion'. According to HRANA, the news agency of human rights activists in Iran, this ruling was issued by Branch 1060 of the Criminal Court 2 of the Government Employees Judicial Complex in Tehran. On Tuesday, February 20, in a message on the social media platform 'X', he cited the reason for his conviction as the 'revelation' of his prison conditions and being held 'next to the toilet', which he claimed is a violation of human rights. Hadi Kasai-Zadeh wrote: 'I was convicted for revealing that I was imprisoned next to the toilet, which is against human rights and creates discrimination in the classification of prisoners by the prison organization because I reported what was happening in prison.' This journalist, who has a history of summons and judicial confrontations due to his activities, was arrested on December 19 after visiting the Qodosi Judicial Complex in Tehran and was released on bail a few days later. On February 14, the editor-in-chief of 'Meydan Azadi' also noted in a post on 'X' that the Press Court had sentenced him to '6 months in prison' for 'publishing a confidential letter regarding 80 head of cattle'. Hadi Kasai-Zadeh did not mention the date of his conviction by the Press Court. Pressure on journalists in Iran intensified with the onset of nationwide protests at the end of September 2022, leading to the arrest of at least 73 journalists and photojournalists in the second half of last year, further jeopardizing press freedom. According to the latest report by Reporters Without Borders on media freedom, published on May 2, 2023, Iran ranks 177 out of 180 countries worldwide.