DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A court in Iran sentenced two journalists to up to seven years in prison for collaborating with the U.S. government and other charges, local reports said Sunday.
“The convictions of Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi are a travesty and serve as a stark testament to the erosion of freedom of speech and the desperate attempts of the Iranian government to criminalize journalism,” said Sherif Mansour, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator.
The Tehran Revolutionary Court had charged the journalists with collaborating with the hostile American government, colluding against national security and propaganda against the system, according to Mezan.
In May, the United Nations awarded the journalists its premier prize for press freedom for their commitment to truth and accountability.
Although nearly 100 journalists were arrested during the demonstrations, Hamedi’s and Mohammadi’s reporting was crucial in the days after Amini’s death to spread the word about the anger that followed.
Their detentions have sparked international criticism over the bloody security forces crackdown that lasted months after Amini’s death.
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