The Case of Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi Closed by Court of Appeals

The case of Elahe Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi, two journalists arrested and charged in connection with the death of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, has been declared "closed" following the announcement of a pardon. This was announced on Tuesday, February 23, by Shahab Mirloohi, Parto Borhanpour, and Hojjat Kermani, the lawyers for the two journalists. Niloufar Hamedi was arrested on September 22, 2022, after the death of Mahsa Zhina Amini in the custody of the morality police, due to writing a report about her death. After 13 months of temporary detention, she was tried in Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court on charges of "collaboration with the hostile government of the United States," "conspiracy to commit a crime against national security," and "propaganda against the regime," and was sentenced to a total of 13 years in prison. Elahe Mohammadi, a journalist for the "Ham-Mihan" newspaper, was also arrested on October 29, 2022, following her coverage of Mahsa Amini's funeral in Saqqez, and was tried on similar charges to those of Niloufar Hamedi, receiving a total sentence of 12 years in prison. After 17 months of imprisonment, both journalists were temporarily released on bail of 10 billion tomans on January 24, 2024, following a ruling from the Court of Appeals. Asghar Jahangir, the spokesperson for the Iranian judiciary, stated on October 14 this year that the five-year prison sentence for Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi would be enforced. In response, the lawyers of Niloufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi emphasized in separate interviews on October 14 that their clients are subject to the "pardon directive announced in 2022." However, the judiciary announced that a new case had been opened against the two journalists due to the publication of images without mandatory hijab after their temporary release from prison. Five days later, their lawyers reported that their clients had been summoned to Evin Prison for the enforcement of the five-year sentence. Today, the three lawyers announced that following an appeal to the Court of Appeals, both were ultimately acquitted of the charge of "collaboration with a hostile government" and were pardoned in two other cases, thus closing their criminal cases. During the detention and imprisonment of these two journalists, numerous activists and human rights organizations had called for their release and acquittal.