Iranian journalists Elaheh Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi, who coated the dying of Mahsa Amini final yr have obtained important jail sentences, as introduced by Iran’s judiciary on Sunday.
Elaheh, aged 36, and Niloufar, aged 31, have been discovered responsible of collaborating with america, Iran’s arch-enemy, in line with the judiciary’s Mizan On-line web site.
The Revolutionary Courtroom has sentenced Mohammadi to 6 years in jail, whereas Hamedi obtained a seven-year jail time period. As well as, each journalists have been handed five-year sentences for conspiring towards state safety and one other yr for propagating towards the Islamic Republic. These sentences will probably be served concurrently.
Mohammadi, a reporter for the Ham Mihan newspaper, and Hamedi, a photographer for Shargh newspaper, have been detained in Tehran’s Evin jail since September 2022, and their trials started in Might.
Hamedi was arrested shortly after Amini’s dying when she visited the hospital the place Amini was being handled and posted a photograph of the grieving household on social media. Mohammadi’s arrest occurred after she went to Amini’s hometown, Saqez, within the western Iranian province of Kurdistan, to cowl her funeral, which subsequently changed into an indication.
The verdicts towards Hamedi and Mohammadi, who have been tried individually, are open to enchantment, in line with Mizan. As of now, their lawyer has not commented on the rulings.
In August, Iranian media reported that over 90 journalists had been questioned or arrested because the protests triggered by Amini’s dying erupted in varied cities throughout Iran.
On the primary day of her trial, Hamedi acknowledged in court docket that she had labored as a journalist inside the framework of the regulation and had not dedicated any acts towards Iran’s safety, as reported by her husband, Mohammad Hossein Ajorlou, on social media.
Their trials have been performed behind closed doorways and confronted criticism from their households and authorized representatives. Worldwide organisations advocating for journalists’ rights, comparable to Reporters With out Borders (RSF), have additionally condemned the trials and referred to as for his or her launch.
In August, the judiciary indicated that these trials weren’t solely associated to Amini’s dying but additionally concerned their alleged collaboration with america, as reported by the NGO United for Iran based mostly in California.
Iran and america severed diplomatic ties following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which led to the overthrow of the US-backed Shah.
The lawyer for each journalists, Mohammad Ali Kamfirouzi, was detained for over three weeks in early January earlier than being launched on bail. Through the months-long Amini protests, a number of hundred folks, together with safety forces, misplaced their lives, and hundreds have been arrested for his or her participation within the demonstrations. Seven males have been additionally executed resulting from their connections with the “riots,” as described by Iranian officers.
This newest court docket ruling follows the sentencing of Amini’s lawyer, Saleh Nikbakht, to at least one yr in jail for propagating towards the state and talking with international and native media in regards to the case. In February, Iran’s Supreme Chief, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, granted clemency to a “important quantity” of convicts, although Mohammadi and Hamedi weren’t amongst these launched.