Reporters Without Borders: Security and Judiciary Efforts to Suppress Independent Reporting

Reporters Without Borders reported dozens of cases of "threats and pressure" on journalists of Persian-language media outside Iran and their families by security agencies and the judiciary, condemning these actions as an "effort to suppress independent reporting." The organization announced on Wednesday, September 6, that more than 50 Iranian journalists residing abroad have been threatened in various ways, with 16 of them receiving "death threats." According to the report, journalists from BBC Persian, Radio Farda, Voice of America, Deutsche Welle, Radio France Internationale, private networks including Manoto, and news websites like Amadnews have been threatened. Meanwhile, Arman Mostofi, director of Radio Farda, reported that this year there have been "11 death threats against four Radio Farda journalists." Mr. Mostofi stated that these threats "are unsigned. Sometimes it is a message, and sometimes a comment published under a news article on the Radio Farda website, but later the sender refers back to the threat message clearly. Sometimes they refer to information that only security agents have access to." In one instance of pressure from the Islamic Republic on Iranian journalists abroad, the Iranian Registration Organization recently issued a "ban on transactions" for 152 BBC staff members to all registration offices and notary offices in Iran. In previous years, security agencies of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly summoned and threatened the families of Iranian journalists working in Persian-language media abroad, and reports have been published about some of these threats. These security agencies have asked families to inform these journalists to cease cooperation with Persian-language media abroad and return to Iran. Meanwhile, Mohammad Reza Nikfar, editor-in-chief of Radio Zamaneh, informed Reporters Without Borders that the Ministry of Intelligence summoned the family of one of the media's colleagues and warned them to tell their child to stop cooperating with Zamaneh. According to Mr. Nikfar, Ministry of Intelligence agents also threatened one of the media's staff members over the phone, saying, "Return to Iran, or your family will be pressured." In recent years, several Iranian journalists who collaborated with Persian-language media abroad, including Bahman Darolshafaee, Sarajeddin Mirdamadi, and Saeed Razavi Faqih, have been imprisoned after returning to Iran. Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders stated that five journalists who returned to Iran after 2013 have been arrested and sentenced to prison terms ranging from three to twelve years. According to the report, the wives of journalists from Persian-language media abroad are summoned and interrogated by the Ministry of Intelligence after their passports are confiscated at the airport during their travels to Iran. The organization also noted that families of Iranian journalists abroad who visit these journalists are summoned and interrogated upon their return to Iran. Reporters Without Borders stated in its announcement that threats and pressure on Persian-language media and journalists abroad have "decreased" or "at least the harassment has changed methods" since Hassan Rouhani's presidency. According to the report, during Mr. Rouhani's presidency, security agencies "have used softer methods," families of journalists are summoned and interrogated "respectfully," but they are still sent the message to "cease cooperation with hostile media as soon as possible." The organization also reported that Mohammad Milad Zam, brother of Rouhollah Zam, founder of the Amadnews website, has been detained since September 4. Previously, two of Mr. Zam's sisters and the wife of one of his sisters had been arrested and imprisoned for some time. Last month, several journalists and political activist Mehdi Khazali were also arrested. Meanwhile, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, Tehran's prosecutor, accused Mehdi Khazali of sending "false news to Voice of America and anti-revolutionary websites." Sasan Aghaei, deputy editor of the Etemad newspaper, was arrested on Saturday evening, August 12, and Yaghma Fashkhami, a journalist, was arrested on Tuesday afternoon, August 22. The World Congress of the International Federation of Journalists, in its recent meeting in Angers, France, held from June 8 to 10, called for the release of imprisoned journalists in Iran at the request of the representative of the Iranian Journalists' Association. Additionally, before that, 29 members of the European Parliament, in a letter on May 12, had asked the Iranian authorities to release journalists, political prisoners, and managers of Telegram channels.