Public Trial of Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi; Public Demand, Kayhan's Anger

Kayhan newspaper reacted to the public demand and the families of Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi for a 'public trial' of these two journalists, stating that 'they are looking for a new excuse for uproar' and that the 'reformist-claiming media' have somehow 'taken the initiative to not fall behind.' From Kayhan's perspective, the goal of these individuals is to undermine the performance of the Islamic Republic's judiciary. In this regard, Ahmad Zeidabadi wrote on his Telegram channel that if the accusations against them are based on 'solid and court-admissible evidence,' what is the judiciary's concern about the trial being public? Azar Mansouri, a reformist political activist, also tweeted that it is the legal right of Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi to have their trial publicly held with their lawyers present. The Committee for Following Up on the Status of Detained Journalists issued a statement criticizing the procedure of holding trials for media personnel and demanded the public trial of these two cases. According to this statement published on Wednesday, June 3, the committee warned about the lack of access to trial details by the public and what it called 'the truth of the matters,' referring to the upcoming trial of the two detained journalists scheduled for June 8 and 9. Journalist Elahe Khosravi also tweeted, 'I would appreciate it if you could use this hashtag (public trial) to advocate for the public trial of Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi. Our colleagues, after 9 months of detention, have the right to be present in a public trial.' The families of these two journalists told the newspaper 'Etemad' that these two prominent social journalists have only worked for transparency and improving conditions in Iran during their careers, and now achieving the demand for a transparent and public handling of their accusations can also align with their professional work. Etemad newspaper also emphasized that the request for a public trial for these two journalists has been raised by many media and political figures in the past two days, and legal experts have deemed this request legal and based on the constitutional text. The article continues: 'Now we must wait and see whether this request and campaign will meet with the judiciary's approval or whether they will take another approach.' After months of detention, Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi, due to revealing the circumstances of Mahsa Amini's death, the judiciary of the Islamic Republic has set the date for their trial for next week. One of the charges against these imprisoned journalists is 'collaboration with the United States.' A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department recently rejected the Islamic Republic's allegations against Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi regarding 'collaboration with the U.S.' Matthew Miller, in response to a question from a Voice of America reporter regarding the case of these two imprisoned journalists, said: 'Regarding this specific question, we reject these allegations. They are clearly not true.' Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi, along with Narges Mohammadi, were recently announced as this year's winners of the UNESCO International Press Freedom Prize known as 'Guillermo Cano.' Niloufar Hamedi, a journalist for the Shargh newspaper, announced Mahsa Amini's death after she was killed in custody by the morality police and was arrested by the Islamic Republic's security agencies a few days later. Elahe Mohammadi, who worked for the Ham-Mihan newspaper, reported on Mahsa Amini's funeral and has also been in prison since September. These two journalists have also jointly received the International 'Press Freedom' award from the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression and the 'Lion' award from the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. The setting of the trial date for Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi, two detained journalists, comes after months of uncertainty. In response to Voice of America, the United States rejected the Islamic Republic's claims regarding Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi. After months, with the setting of the trial date, the case of Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi has moved forward. The 'Freedom of Writing' award was given to Narges Mohammadi; the American Pen Association awarded this prize to Mrs. Mohammadi's husband. The Iranian Writers' Association has called for the unconditional release of all imprisoned journalists in Iran. The new ranking of Reporters Without Borders regarding media freedom has been published; Iran is at the bottom of the table. Three imprisoned women journalists in Iran have won the UNESCO Press Freedom Prize.