Aadel Collection
With 52 journalists in jail, Iran hits new, shameful record
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C Committee to Protect journalists
Defending Journalis:s Worldw cie
With 52 journalists in jail, Iran hits new, shameful record
accusations during a mass judicial proceeding in August. (AP)
New York, March 9, 2010—The number of journalists in jail rose in February as a relentless media crackdown continues in
Iran. Authorities are now holding at least 52 journalists in prison, a third of all those in jail around the world, according to the
latest monthly survey by the Committee to Protect Journalists.
“Iran is entering a state of permanent media repression, a situation that is not only appalling but also untenable,”
said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon. “The Iranian government will eventually lose the war against
information, but we are saddened every day that our colleagues are paying such a terrible price.”
Twelve journalists were imprisoned in February alone, although seven were released. The January census
recorded 47 in jail. CPJ has joined forces with leading press freedom organizations from around the world in j
campaign (http://www.oursocietywillbeafreesociety.org/) to win the release ofjournalists jailed in Iran. An online
petition that will be sent to Ayatollah Sayed A u Khamenei later this month is available on the site
( http://www.oursocietywillbeafreesociety.org/petition.php) .
In light of the Iranian government's ongoing crackdown, CPJ has been conducting a
monthly survey ofjournalists imprisoned in Iran. (CPJ normally conducts a worldwide survey of jailed
journalists each December.) The survey, conducted on the first of each month, is a snapshot of those
incarcerated on that date. It does not include more than 50 other journalists in Iran who have been imprisoned
and released on bail over the last several months. Five of those now in jail were detained prior to the 2009
crackdown.
The current detainees include internationally known figures such as Emadeddin
Baghi, the author and human rights defender, Mohammad Davari, an editor who
helped expose prisoner abuse at the Kahrizak Detention Center, and Shiva Nazar
Ahari, a human rights reporter who has been jailed twice in the last nine months
and is being held in solitary confinement.
More than 100 dissidents and journalists faced vague antistate
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In most cases, authorities have filed vague antistate charges such as “propagation Imprisoned reporter Shiva
against the regime,” insulting authorities, and disrupting public order. But many Nazar Ahari
cases are shrouded in secrecy, without even formal charges being disclosed.
Some detainees have already been sentenced to lengthy prison terms, lashes, internal exile, and lifetime bans on
writing and other social and political activities. The cases of many others are pending. At least two face heresy
charges that, upon conviction, would bring the death penalty.
Currently, China (http:llcpj.org/imprisoned/2009.php) is the world's second largest jailer of journalists, with 24 in
prison, followed by Cuba, with 22. (http://cpj.org/imprisoned/2009.php) The number of j ailed journalists is the
highest CPJ has recorded in a single country since December 1996, when it documented 78 imprisonments in
Turkey.
Here are capsule reports on each journalist jailed in Iran:
Adnan Hassanpour, Aso
Imprisoned: January 25, 2007
Security agents seized }-iassanpour, former editor for the now-deftinct Kurdish-Persian weekly .4so, in his hometown
of Marivan, Kurdistan province, according to news reports.
A Revolutionary Court convicted Hassanpour in July 2007 of endangering national security and engaging
in propaganda against the state, one of his attorneys, Sirvan Hosmandi, told CPJ. The journalist was
sentenced to death. A court of appeals overturned the death sentence in September 2008 and ordered a
new trial on charges of “working for outlawed parties” and espionage, according to the BBC. Tn November 2009, a trial
court convicted Hassanpour on the new charges and re-imposed the death sentence, the BBC said. According to reports
( http://www.rhairan.or2/arcbives/4695) on the Human Rights Activists News Agency Web site, Adnan Hassanpour's death
sentence was overturned in February and he was given a new sentence of 31 years in prison instead.
Mohammad Seddigh Kaboudvand, Payam-e Mardom
Imprisoned: July 1, 2007
Plainclothes security officials arrested journalist and human rights activist Kaboudvand at his
Tehran office, according to Amnesty International and CPJ sources. He is being held at Evin
Prison in Tehran.
Authorities accused Kaboudvand, head of the Human Rights Organization of Kurdistan and
managing editor of the weekly Payam-e Mardom, of acting against national security and engaging
in propaganda against the state, according to his organization's Web site. A Revolutionary Court in
Tehran sentenced him to 11 years in prison.
Mojtaba Lotfi, freelance
Imprisoned: October 8, 2008
A clergyman and blogger, Lotfi was arrested by security forces on a warrant issued by the
religious Clergy Court in Qom. Authorities accused him of publishing the views of Ayatollah
Hossein-Ali Montazeri, who had criticized President Mahmoud Ahmadinej ad's positions.
Authorities did not specify particular articles or publications in which the views were supposedly cited. Loffi
was convicted of several charges, including spreading antistate information, and sentenced to four years in
prison, according to news reports.
Hossein Derakhshan, freelance Imprisoned: November 2008 RSF
Farda
I
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On December 30, 2008, a spokesman for the Iranian Judiciary confirmed in a press conference in Tehran that Derakhshan,
a well-known Iranian-Canadian blogger, had been detained since November 2008 in connection with comments he
allegedly made about a key cleric, according to local and international news reports.
Jahan NewsThe exact date of Derakhshan's arrest was unknown, but news of his detention first appeared on
November 17, 2008, on a Web site close to the Iraman intelligence apparatus. At the time, Jahan
News reported that he had confessed to “spying for Israel ” during the preliminary interrogation.
Derakhshan started blogging after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. A former
writer for reformist newspapers, he also contributed opinion pieces to The Guardian of London and The
New York Times. The journalist, who lived in Canada during most of the last decade, returned to Tehran a
few weeks pnor to his detention, The Washington Post reported. hi November, the BBC Persian service
reported that Derakhshan's family had sought information about his whereabouts and the charges he faced and
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expressed concern about having very limited contact with him. According to an article
( http://www.khodnevis.org) inKhodnevis , a cooperative Web site of Iranian journalists, Derakhshan has
spent more than nine months of his detention in solitary confinement at Evin Prison. He has not had any visits with his family, and has
only recently been allowed to buy items at the prison store. According to this article, Derakhshan's charges range from espionage for
Israel to illegitimate sexual relationships and insulting sacred concepts, charges that carry a death sentence.
Nader Karimi Jooni, Jahan-e-Sanat, Sharq, Gozaresh, Fekr, and Siasat-e-Rooz
Imprisoned: December 2008
Jooni, arrested in late 2008, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on January 11, 2010, at Branch 28 of the Revolutionary
Court. He was convicted on charges of mutiny, espionage, and acting against national security, according
( ) to the reformist Web site Kalame. He denied the charges and said
the case was politicized.Jooni, who was an editor and writer for now-defunct publications such as Gozaresh,
Fekr, Jahan-e Sanat and Siasat Roozi> was placed in Evin Prison's Ward 209, where political prisoners are held.
He is an Iran-Iraq War veteran who requires ongoing medical care, according to reformist news Web site
Kalame. (http: //www.kaleme.org /1388I1 0221k1m-81 61 )
Mohammad Pour Abdollah, freelance
Imprisoned: February 13, 2009 On December 9, 2009, branch 15 of Iran's Revolutionary
On December 9, 2009, branch 15 of Iran's Revolutionary Courts sentenced Pour Abdollah, a
Tehran university student and a blogger, to six years in prison for “illegal congregation, actions
against national security, and propagating against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” according to
( http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2009
1121091210 op students pouabdullah sentenced azar.shtml) the BBC Persian Web site.
r According to different news Web sites, he has been tortured and abused physically and
. L } psychologically in prison.
RAHANIA
Since his detention, Pour Abdollah's blog has been disabled. Only his last post can be
accessed on another writer's blog. In that post, Pour Abdollah writes ( http:Ilazadi-mohamad.blogspot.comI2009IO3IbIog-
post.html) critically about the political, social, and economic conditions in Iran and elsewhere.
Morteza Moradpour, Yaz ligh
Imprisoned: May 22, 2009
Biziin Tabriz news Web site (http:I/azadi-mohamad.blogspot.com/2009/03/blog-post. html)
provided (http://btna.info/index.php/photo/4819.htmt) an image of one of two issues of Yazligh, a childreds
magazine, which were used as part of the evidence in the case against Moradpour. The issues Tabriz,
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ADAPP according to a news article (http:llscbrr.netlspip.php?article8344) on the Committee of Human
Rights Reporters' Web site. He was released on bail several months later, according to
( http:lltabrizsesi.blo&a.comlpost-5967.aspx) the Tabriz S'esi news Web site. Tabriz S csi reported that on November 10,
2009, Moradpour was tried with others in Tabriz and two days later was sentenced to three years in prison. Moradpour's
attorney appealed the ruling but the appeals court upheld the sentence on February 9. Tabriz Scsi reported that
Moradpour's attorney said the charges are politically motivated and fabricated. The Committee of Human Rights
Reporters' article noted that in recent months pressure on Azeri civil activists has increased as the Islamic Republic
attempts to portray a violent image of this ethnic minority in fran.
Alunad Zaid-Abadi, freelance
Imprisoned: June 2009
) Zaid-Abadi, who wrote a weekly column for Rooz Online, a Farsi- and English-language reformist news
Web site, was arrested in Tehran, according to news reports. Zaid-Abadi is also the director of the
Organization of University Alumni of the Islamic Republic of fran and a supporter of defeated presidential
candidate Mehdi Karroubi.
Mahdieh Mohammadi, Zaid-Abadi's wife, was allowed to see the journalist after he had spent 53
days in custody, according to the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle. He told her that he
was being held in inhumane conditions. according to the Parleman News Web site. Zaid-Abadi
/ and journalist Massoud Bastani were transferred to Rajaee Shahr Prison in February. His lawyer
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objected to the transfer, accordln2 to (http:llwww.etemaad.irlReleasedl88-11-18 1204.htm#174488 )
the reformist daily Etemad. Rajaee Shahr Prison s detainees are mostly hardened criminals who are serving sentences for
murder and smuggling.
Otnid Salinii, Nesf e Jehan
Imprisoned: June 14, 2009
Salimi, a photographer who worked for Nesf e Jehan newspaper in Esfahan, was arrested after being summoned by the
Revolutionary Guards to pick up belongings confiscated during an earlier arrest, according to Human Rights and
Democracy Activists in fran, a local human rights watchdog Salimi had been detained in December 2008 and had spent
three months in prison on unspecified charges.
After his most recent arrest, Salimi was transferred to Evin Prison in Tehran, according to the framan Human Rights Activists New
Agency. No formal charges have been disclosed.
Samimi, manager of the now-defunct monthly Nameh, is being held in Evin Prison after his arrest in
Tehran, according to news reports. Samimi called his family in October to tell them that he was pressured
to make a false confession, his lawyer told Rooz Online.
U.S. government-funded Radio Farda. According to (file:IIIC:lDocuinents%20and%20Setthws
llwo lfelLocal%2OSettin2sllwoffelLocal%20Settin2sllwo lfelLocal%2OSettin 2s
lTe lnporary%20 lnternet%2OF11e 5 IOLKIOAI:lwww.free -journalists.coml2 O l O l O2 lblo 2-
t 3157.html) the Free Iranian Journalists Web site, on February 22, Samimi was transferred
from Evin's general ward to solitary confinement after he objected to unsuitable prison
(conditions, and a visit with his family was cancelled.
Kayvan Samimi, Nameh
Imprisoned: June 14, 2009
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RAI l - lANA Saeed Laylaz, Sarmayek
Imprisoned: June 17, 2009
Laylaz, editor of the daily business journal Sarmayeh and a vocal critic of President Mahmoud Ahmadinej ad's economic
policies, was arrested at home on June 17, his wife, Sepharnaz Panahi, told the BBC Persian service. She said that officers
searched their home and confiscated videotapes, hard drives, and letters.
Tehran's Evin Prison before being moved to a group cell, where he was denied newspapers, pen, and paper, his wife told
the Conmiittee of Human Rights Reporters.
Laylaz was charged with “congregation and mutiny against national security, propagating against the regime, disrupting
public order, and keeping classified documents,” according to Mowjcamp, a news Web site supportive of the defeated
presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi.
After a two-hour trial in November, he was sentenced to nine years in prison, according to the Human Rights
Activists News Agency and online accounts. His wife told the news Web site Kalameh that the “classified
document” that was a centerpiece of the prosecution was actually a published and widely available investigation
into the Iranian judiciary. Laylaz awaits the results of his appeal, according to (http://www.rahesabz.net/storv
/ 10711/) the reformist news Web site Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz.
Bahman Ahmadi Amouee, freelance
Imprisoned: June 19, 2009
Amouee, a contributor to reformist newspapers such as Mi / ian, Ham s/ia/in, Jame'e, Khordad, Norooz, and
Sharq, and the author of an eponymous blog, was arrested with his wife, Zhila Bani-Yaghoub, according to
news reports. Bani-Yaghoub, editor-in-chief of the iranian Women's Club, a news Web site focusing on
women's rights, was released on bail on August 19, according to the BBC Persian service.
Amouee was being held in Tehran's Evin Prison, part of the time in solitary confinement, according
Feminist to news reports. Amouee's wife said the journalist was denied access to his family and lawyer for
School several weeks, according to Mowjcamp, a news Web site supportive of the reformist candidate
Mir-Hossein Mousavi.
On January 5, Amouee was sentenced to 34 lashes, along with seven years and four months in prison. Amouee's
wife, journalist Zhila Bani-Yagho ub, told (http://www.roozonline.com/persian/news/newsitem/article
/ 107/-d8238360c4.html) Rooz Online on February 21 that he shares a 115-square-foot (35-square-meter) cell with
40 other prisoners.
Hamzeh Karami, Jomhooriyat
Imprisoned: June 19, 2009
According to (http://www.irangreenvoice.com/content/1399) Nedaye Sabz-e Azadi, Karami, editor of the
now-defunct reformist news Web site Jomhooriyat was arrested on June 19, 2009. Jomhooriyat was banned by
Iranian authorities on June 12, 2009, according to (http:llwww.asriran.corn/fa/pages/?cid=75104) Asr-e /mn news
Web site. Karami is a close ally of reformist politician Mehdi Hashemi Rafsanjani who was tried in August along
with dozens of other suspects. He has been forced to make confessions against himself and others, according to
the Reporters and Human Rights Activists of/ran (http:llrhairan.org/prisonersl?p=1029) Web site. On
February 27, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison and fined 600 million toomans (US$600,000). Some of his
charges were “acting against national security through congregation and mutiny intended to disrupt public order,”
“propagating against the regime,” “propagating falsehoods,” and “embezzlemenf' according to
( http://www.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=880603061 5) the semi-official Fars News Agency.
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Issa Sahar-Khiz, freelance
Imprisoned: July 3, 2009
Sahar-Khiz, a columnist for the reformist news Web sites Rooz
Online and Norooz and a founding member of the Association of Iranian Journalists,
was arrested while traveling in northern Iran, the association said in a statement.
Sahar-Khiis lawyer said his client faces charges of “participation in riots,”
“encouraging others to participate in riots,” and “insulting the supreme leader,”
according to Rooz Online.
Sahar-Khiz has had a long career in journalism. He worked for 15 years for
IRNA, Iran's official news agency, and ran its New York office for part of that
time. He returned to Iran in 1997 to work in Mohammad Khatami's Ministry of
Islamic Guidance, in charge of domestic publications. Sahar-Khiz and a
superior, Ahmad Bouraghani, came to be known as the architects of a period
of relative freedom for the press in Iran. After Sahar-Khiz was forced to leave the ministry and was banned from
government service in a trial, he founded a reformist newspaper, Akhbar-e Eghtesad, and monthly
magazine, Aftab, both of which were eventually banned. Sahar-Khiz wrote articles directly critical of Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader. According to (http://www.roozonline.com/persian/news/newsitem/article
1107l-d8238360c4.html) Rooz Online, Issa Sahar-Khiz is subjected to constant pressure at Evin Prison. His cell
was recently changed to keep him from communicating with other journalists. Previously, his punishments
included being kept in the prison yard overnight in freezing temperatures without shoes or socks, Rooz Online
reported.
Massoud Bastani, Farhikhtegan and Jomhor!yat
Imprisoned: July 5, 2009
Bastani, a journalist for the reformist newspaper Farihikhtegan and Jomhoriyat, a news Web
site affiliated with the defeated presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi, was arrested when
he went to a Tehran court seeking information about his wife, journalist Mehsa Amrabadi,
according to local news reports. Amrabadi, arrested along with two other journalists on June
15, was released on August 25.
Bastani was among more than 100 opposition figures and journalists who faced a mass,
televised judicial proceeding in August on vague antistate accusations, according to news
reports. In September, his lawyer, Mohammad Sharrif, told the Amir Kabir Newsletter Web site
that Bastani had spent weeks in solitary confinement.
On October 20, the news site Norooz reported that a court had sentenced Bastani to six years in prison for
“propagating against the regime and congregating and mutinying to create anarchy.”
Bastani had been editor-in-chief of the now-banned Neda-ye Eslahat (Voice of Reform) weekly. Bastani was
transferred to the Rajaee Shahr Prison for hardened criminals, along with Ahmad Zaid-Abadi, according to
( http:llwww.etemaad.ir/Releasedl88-1 1-18/204. htm#1 74488) the reformist daily Etemad.
Marjan Abdollahian, Hamshahri
Imprisoned: July 9, 2009
The BBC Persian service and other news outlets reported that authorities had detained Abdollahian, a photo
editor for the Tehran-based Hamshahri newspaper. Six days after her arrest, she called her family to inform them
that she was being held in Evin Prison, according to the news Web site Rooz Online. No formal charges have
been disclosed.
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Saeed Matin-Pour, Yar Pag and Motif Bidari
Imprisoned: July 12, 2009
A Revolutionary Court in Tehran convicted Matin-Pour of having “relations Mth foreigners and propagating
against the regime,” according to local news reports. He was sentenced to an eight-year prison term.
Matin-Pour was first arrested in May 2007 and released on bail. He was rearrested in
2009 amid the government's crackdown on the press. The journalist worked for Yar
Pag and Motif Bidari newspapers in western Azerbaijan province, in addition to writing
his own blog, according to local news reports. Matin-Pour suffers from head and
respiratory problems, and his family was not immediately able to secure a medical
release for examination outside prison, according to the news Web site Advarnews.
According to (http:IIw.,wsi.savalansesi.comI2O l OIO2Iblog-post 5278.html) Savalan
Sessi, an Azeri human rights Web site, on February 4, Matin-Pour suffered severe
chest pains and prison authorities delayed giving him medical attention. Prison
authorities have repeatedly refused Matin-Pour family's requests for him to receive
medical leave.
Reza Nourbakhsh, Farhikhtegan
Imprisoned: August 4, 2009
Authorities took Nourbakhsh, editor-in-chief of the reformist newspaper Farhikhtegan, into custody after
searching his home, according to news reports. Nourbakhsh also contributed to Jomhooriyat, a news Web site
supportive of the defeated presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi.
Nourbakhsh was among more than 100 opposition figures and journalists who faced a mass, televised judicial
proceeding in August on vague antistate accusations, according to news reports. He was sentenced to six years
in prison on November 3, although the exact charges against him were not disclosed.
Mohammad Hossein Sohrabi Rad, Saham News
Imprisoned: September 2009
Sohrabi Rad was arrested by Ministry of Information agents on charges of working with Saham News in
preparing a documentary on prisoner abuse at the Kahrizak Detention Center, according (file://III%20http:
Iwww.hra-news.orgInewsIl2O7l.aspx) to the reformist Web site Asr-e Nou. (The detention center was closed in
July 2009 after evidence emerged of pervasive abuse of detainees.)
Asr-e Nou reported that Sohrabi Rad had been subjected to physical and psychological pressure at Evin Prison.
Authorities transferred Sohrabi Rad from Ward 209, where political prisoners are held, to solitary confinement in
Ward 240, according to news reports. A prison doctor said the journalist was suffering greatly in prison,
according (http://hrdai.blogspot.comI2OlO/01/blog-post 3603.html) to the Web site of Human Rights and
Democracy Activists of Iran. He was married shortly before his arrest, according to the site.
Mohammad Davari, Saham News
Imprisoned: September 5, 2009
Saham News, a Web site affiliated with presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi, reported that its editor-
been detained. Seventeen days after his arrest, the journalist was allowed to contact his
family, according to the Tahavolkhani news Web site. His mother said he was being held at
Tehran's Evin Prison.
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Davari was brought to trial on November 22 on charges of propagating against the RA HA NA
regime, congregation and mutiny for disrupting national security, and creating chaos in
public order.
In the weeks after the election, Davari had videotaped the testimony of inmates at Kahrizak Detention Center
who alleged they had been raped and abused while in custody, according to the Free Iranian Journalists blog.
(The detention center was closed in July 2009 after evidence emerged of pervasive abuse of detainees.)
Javad Mahzadeh, freelance
Imprisoned: October 22, 2009
Mahzadeh, a journalist and novelist, was arrested on his way to work on the orders of the
Revolutionary Court's prosecutor's office, according to local news reports.
Mahzadeh, a political analyst and a literary critic who wrote for the Web sites Iranian
Diplomacy and Baran, is well-known in Iran for the novel Take Away Your Laughter
Authorities confiscated a computer from his home, according to news reports. No
formal charges have been disclosed. According to (http:llwww.hra-news.info
lnewsll 251 7.aspx) the Human Rights Activists News Agency, Mahzadeh was
sentenced to four years in prison on February 3.
Security forces raided the home of Aghaee, a seasoned journalist who contributed to a number of
newspapers, including Farhikhtegan, Etemad, Tose'eh, Mardom Salari, and Etemad e Melli. He
was also author of the blog Free Tribune.
Aghaee is being held at Evin Prison, according to news reports. In a letter the journalist
asked to be opened in case of his arrest, Aghaee said any confessions he might make in
custody should be disregarded as coerced, according to the reformist Web site Jaras.
Norooz News reports (http:llnorooznews.infolnewsll 681 3.php) that Aghaee's charges are
“actions against national security,” “propagating against the regime,” “disruption of public
order,” and “propagating falsehoods,” according to his attorney. His attorney said that his
request for bail has not been accepted and that Aghaee remains in prison under “temporary
that his attorney says are a violation of the law.
Saeed Jalalifar, Committee of Human Rights Reporters
Saeed Kalanaki, Committee of Human Rights Reporters
Imprisoned: December 2, 2009
Jalalifar and Kalanaki, who reported on child labor and political prisoner issues,
were arrested after being summoned by the Ministry of Information, the reformist
news Web site Kalame reported (http:llwww.kaleme.orglfeed) . According to
( http:llwww.rahesabz.netlstorvl9075l) Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz, Jalalifar, Kalanaki,
and several other arrested members of Committee of Human Rights Reporters
are under pressure in prison to provide confessions, in particular, that they have
tieswith the Mojahedeen-e Khalgh organization, an armed opposition group Kalanaki (CHRR)
outside Iran. Members of the committee have been prevented from seeing
Facebook
detention” orders
Sassan Aghaee, freelance
Imprisoned: November 22, 2009
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their attorneys, a right guaranteed under the Iranian Constitution. Two of the other arrested members of the
committee, Kouhyar Goudarzi and Mehrdad Rahimi, have been charged with heresy, or moharebeh--a
capital crime.
Jalalifar and Kalanaki were the first of several committee journalists to be arrested for
their work in exposing alleged human rights violations and government malfeasance.
Jalalifar was unable to contact his family during the first 40 days of his confinement,
according (http:llwww.chrr.uslspip.php?article7803) to the committee's Web site.
Kouhyar Goudarzi, Committee of Human Rights Reporters
Imprisoned: December 20, 2009
Goudarzi, a veteran journalist for the human rights committee, has been charged with moharebeh, or heresy, a
capital crime, according to local news reports and the BBC Persian service. Held at Evin Prison, he has also
been charged with propagating against the regime and participating in illegal congregations.
Visitors to the prison said Goudarzi's head was bandaged, although it was not clear how he sustained his injuries,
according to the reformist online publication Rooz Online. The human rights committee said judicial authorities
have sought to link the organization to external political parties. Kouhyar Goudarzi's mother
( http:llwww.hammihannews.comlnewsl9383) Hammihan News on February 25 that she was only allowed to visit
with him for seven minutes after waiting for hours. Goudarzi told his mother that he is resisting pressure to
confess to charges of heresy.
Saeed Haeri, Committee of Human Rights Reporters
Shiva NazarAhari, Committee of Human Rights Reporters
Imprisoned: December 20, 2009
Nazar Ahari and Haeri were detained while on a bus from Tehran to Qom to attend the funeral
of influential cleric Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri. Haeri's family was unable to visit the
journalist until January 24, according to the Amir Kabir Bulletin (http:/Iwww.autnews.de
Inode/6632 ) , an online student news site critical of the Iranian government. No formal charges
have been disclosed against Haeri.
Nazar Ahari, at right, had bcenj ailed for four months in the immediate
CHRR aftermath of the disputed June presidential election. She was free on bail
when she was rearrested in December. The reformist Web site Kalame said
Nazar Ahari is in solitary confinement at Evin Prison's Ward 209, where political prisoners are
held.
In a meeting with the journalist's family members, a prosecutor claimed that the human
rights committee was affiliated with an armed opposition group, Kalame reported. Nazar The Feminist School
Ahari has been charged with illegal congregation, according to the committee's Web site.
Mohammad Nourizad, freelance
I s
Jalalifar (CHRR)
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Imprisoned: December 20, 2009
The B BC Persian service reported (http:Ilwww. bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2009
/ 12/091220 na nourizad detained.shtml) that Nourizad, a blogger and documentary filmmaker, was arrested after
he wrote an open letter to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei urging him to apologize for the govemment's
post-election conduct, and an article (http://mohammadnurizad.bloqfa.com/) criticizing the head of Iran's judiciary.
The government-run Mehr News said Nourizad is charged with “insulting authorities” and “propagating against the
regime.” On January 5, security officers raided Nourizad's home, seizing his computer and documents,
according (http://www.rahesabz.net/story/7247/) to the pro-opposition news Web site Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz.
Held at Evin Prison, Nourizad has waged a hunger strike, according (http://www.hra-news.org/news/11905.aspx )
to the Human Rights Activists News Agency. Jonbesh-e-Rah-e-Sabz reported that (http://www.rahesabz.net
/ storv/8425/) Nourizad's wife was denied visitation rights.
Nourizad had once written for Kayhan, a newspaper closely associated with conservative elements in the
government, but he distanced himself from the publication after the disputed June presidential election. Kayhan
has repeatedly attacked Nourizad and his writing since that time, according to CPJ research.
( http://news.gooya.com/politics/archives/2010/O1/098659.php )
Emadeddin Baghi, freelance
Imprisoned: December 23, 2009
Baghi, the prominent Iranian author, joumalist, and human rights activist, was arrested after being summoned to
the security division of the Revolutionary Court, according (http://www.ayandenews.com/news/16776) to the
reformist Ayandeh News Web site.
When Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri died in December, the BBC Persian service aired a two-year old interview
that Baghi had conducted with the influential cleric. Baghi was arrested soon after the rebroadcast. The
government has sought to clamp down on publicity about Montazeri, who had criticized the conduct of the June
presidential election.
Baghi has been arrested numerous times in the past. In 2000, he was sentenced (http://cpi.org/2000/07
/ iournalist-sentenced-for-criticizing-reaime.php) to five and a half years in prison on charges of “questioning
Islamic law,” “threatening national security,” and “spreading unsubstantiated news” in articles detailing the roles of
intelligence agents in a series of politically motivated murders. He served three years in prison before being
released. He was arrested again in 2007 and served several months for “acting against national security,”
according to local and international news reports. According to a February 10 report (http://www.rahesabz.net
/ storv/9886/) on Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz's Web site, Baghi's initial interrogations are done, but he is still in solitary
confinement. He has not been allowed access to any books, including the Quran, and he has not been allowed to
have any visitors. His family has expressed concern about his health. Baghi's general arrest warrant issued in
December stated he was detained to “prevent abuse of Ayatollah Montazeri's death.”
Alireza Beheshti Shirazi, Kalameh Sabz
Imprisoned: December 23, 2009
Shirazi, editor-in-chief of the now-defunct reformist daily Ka/ameh Sabz, was taken from his home and brought to
an unknown location, according to international news reports (http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/12/28
/ iran.arrests/)
a La
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Creative Commons Shirazi had been arrested (http:llcpj.orgl2009lO6liran-releases-some-journalists-
vilifies-foreign-pr.php) and released in the aftermath of the disputed June
presidential election. At the time, he had given interviews to foreign-language news media about the post-election
turmoil. In a February 28 interview (http:ll.w' ,w.kaleme.com 11388 112 1091k1m-12687) with Kaleme, Beheshti's family
members expressed their concern about a lack of information about his case. They have not been allowed to see
him and he has only been allowed to call them once. His son told Kaleme that he does not know whether
Beheshti's interrogations are over or what his charges are, but knows that remains in solitary confinement.
Arvin Sedaghat Kish, Farhang va Ahang
Imprisoned: December 27, 2009
Sedaghat Kish, a writer for the culture and arts magazine Farhang va Ahang, was the first of three journalists for
the monthly publication to be arrested, according to CPJ research. Kish, who is also a musician, wrote for other
magazines and Web sites, including Harmony Talk, according (http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2010
/ 01/100117 uOl- 117-atashi.shtml) to the BBC Persian service. No formal charges have been disclosed.
Morteza Kazemian, Jonbesh-e Rah-Sabz and freelance
Imprisoned: December 29,2009
Kazemian has written regularly for the opposition news Web site Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz since its inception this
year, the news Web site reported (http://www.rahesabz.net/storvl6594/) . Fahimeh Mellati, Kazemian's wife, told
Mizan News that he has received a bail order of 100 million toomans (US$100,000) and his family is trying to
raise the money. He was arrested once before, in 2002, and posted his 100 million tooman (US$100,000) bail by
handing a property deed over to the court.
Kayvan Mehregan, Etemad
Imprisoned: December 29, 2009
Mehregan is the editor of the political section of the reformist daily Etemad. Authorities arrested him at his office,
according to local news reports. According to (http://mizankhabar.net/index.php?option=com content&
view=article&id=451 : 1388-12-08-1 0-00-48&catid=43:201 0-01 - 09-1 5-51 - 03&Itemidl 23) the Mizan News Web site,
Mehregan's brother told reporters on February 27 that Kayvan was granted a bail order for 100 million toomans
(US$100,000) and that the family is trying to raise the large sum for his release. His charges were announced as
membership in the self-described “national religious” opposition Nehzat-e Azadi Party, but conservative
newspapers and Web sites later accuse him of being affiliated with separatist organizations, according to the
same Mizan News report.
Badressadat Mofidi, Iranian Journalists Association
Imprisoned: December 29, 2009
Mofidi writes articles and conducts interviews with national and international media outlets as secretary of the
Iranian Journalists Association, according to local news reports. She had discussed the governments press
policies in a December 22 interview (http:llwww.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,5046682,00.html) with the Persian
service of the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle. No formal charges have been disclosed against her.
According to (http://www.roozonline.com/persianlnews/newsitem/article/l 07/-d8238360c4.html) Rooz Online,
Mofidi's family is concemed about her health; it is not clear whether she has access to her medications for a
blood disease. She is currently in Evin Prison's “Methadone Ward,” which is said to have substandard hygiene
standards.
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Omid Montazeri, freelance
Imprisoned: December 30, 2009
Montazeri faces charges related to his participation in Ashura Day protests on December 28,
2009, along with his published articles and interviews with foreign news outlets, his aunt told
the reformist news site Farhanq-e Goft-o Goo (http://farhanggoftego.com
/ index.php?option=com content&view—article&id=787:201O-02-O1-08-05-08&
catid=35:2009-08-24-18-45-37&Itemid=54#JOSC TOP) . The site said Montazeri has denied all
charges. Montazeri is being tried along with 15 other people, some of whom face charges as
serious as the capital crime of moharebeh, or heresy.
Defense attorneys have been obstructed in their efforts to confer with Montazeri and RAHANA
review his file, the journalist's sister told (http://www.radiofarda.cornlcontent
1f35 Montazeri Fahimi/1944406.html) the U.S. government-funded Radio Farda. Government media have
published Montazerts “confessions,” which his sister said appear to be coerced. She said she is deeply
concerned about the physical and psychological conditions in which her brother is being held.
Montazeri was arrested a day after his mother, peace activist Mahin Fahimi was taken into custody, according
( http://www.rahesabz.net/storv/7244/ ) to Jonbesh-e-Rah-e-Sabz Web site. Montazeri's father was executed for
his political activities in 1988. Montazeri was sentenced to six years in prison on February 27, according to
( http://schrr. net/spip.php?article8654) the Committee of Human Rights Reporters.
Mehrdad Rahimi, Committee of Human Rights Reporters
Imprisoned: January 1, 2010
Mehrdad Rahimi and Parisa Kakaee, journalists for the Committee of Human Rights
Reporters, were arrested after being summoned by the Ministry of Information, the
reformist news Web site Kalame reported ) . Several other
committee journalists have been arrested for their work in exposing alleged human rights
violations and government malfeasance. Kakaee was released in late February.
Rahimi told his family that interrogators said he would be charged with the capital crime,
moharebeh, or heresy, Kalame said. The charge was formally announced in late
January, according to the BBC Persian service. In a February 21, article, the Committee
of Human Rights Reporters reported (http://chrr.us/spip.php?article8542) that in a
meeting Mth his family, Rahimi told them he has been under pressure to make televised
confessions, but he has maintained that he is innocent, and called his arrest illegal.
Yadollah Eslami, Jonbesh-e-Rah-e-Sabz
Imprisoned: January 4, 2010
Eslami, former editor of the long-banned newspaper Fath, wrote most recently for Jonbesh-e-Rah-
e-Sabz, a Web site that had backed reformist presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi.
Eslami's family publicized the arrest on January 27 after losing hope for a timely release.
Eslami, who is also a practicing ophthalmologist, was arrested at a Tehran medical facility,
according to Parleman News (http:Ilparlemannews.irl?n=7076) , the official Web site of the
minority factions in the Iranian parliament.
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_t_t3 Dehghan, freelance
1 imprisoned: January 8, 2010
Dehghan wrote about social issues for several newspapers and the women's rights Web
site Change for Equa/ity, according (file:IIllI%20http:Iwww.rahesabz.netlstorvl7558l
-----—%20%20)_to Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz. He is in Evin Prison's Ward 209, where political
prisoners are held. The Web site Jmin News (httD:llwww.iminews.com/news/fa/?mi=39&
_______said Dehghan called his family in mid-January, but he said he did not know why
he had been detained.
Mehraneh Atashi, freelance
Imprisoned: January11, 2010
Atashi, a freelance photographer, and her husband were arrested at their home, according
( http://www.radiofarda.com/archive/news/201 00118/143/1 43.html?idl 932144) to the U.S. govemment-funded
Radio Farda and other news sources. Agents seized some of the couple's personal items, including their
computer, news reports said.
Atashi, 30, has worked for several domestic publications, such as Soroush Javan and Hamshahri Javan,
according to (Kalame Web site, and her work has been exhibited in
the U.S. and Europe. Information on her husband or either of their charges was not immediately available.
Lili Farhadpour, freelance
Imprisoned: January 21, 2010
Farhadpour, a veteran journalist who has written about cultural and social issues for reformist
newspapers, was arrested by security forces at her home. She is also the mother of Behrang
Tonekaboni, editor-in-chief of Fahang va Ahang, who was arrested on January 6. Though Behrang
Tonekaboni was released on February 28, Lili Farhadpour remains at Evin Prison. No formal charges
have been disclosed.
Vahid Pourostad, Farhikhtegan and freelance
Imprisoned: January 21, 2010
Pourostad, a well-known Iranian journalist who has published several books, was arrested
at home on the night of February 9 on a warrant issued by the Tehran prosecutor's office,
according to (http://www.iranhumanrights.org/201 0/02/arrest-of-journalist-vahid-
pourostad/) the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. His home was later
searched and his laptop computer and handwritten notes were confiscated. Arresting
officers did not give his family reasons for his arrest. According to the International
Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, Poorostad called his home at the end of February
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and said he is in Ward 240 of Evin Prison.
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Pourostad served on the editorial boards of Mosharekat, Yas-e No, and Vaghaye
Ettefaghieb newspapers and wrote for reformist newspapers Etemad e Mel/i, Mosharekat, and Salam. He was
also one of the founding members of the editorial board of Etemad e Me//i, but was dismissed from his position
last year. Farhikhtegan was the last newspaper on whose editorial board Pourostad served, according to another
news item (http://www.iranhumanrights.org/201 0/02/vahid-poorostad-possiblity-of-release/) by the same
advocacy group.
Pourostad is the author and producer of a book series related to legal documents pertaining to the Iranian press.
Ali Mohammad Eslampour, Navaye Vaght and freelance
Imprisoned: February 2, 2010
Eslampour, an editor-in-chief in Kermanshah Province who also writes a blog (http://www.bamdadl.blocifa.com/) ,
was arrested on February 2, according to (http://hammihannews.com/news/8997) the reformist news Web site
Hammihan. He was summoned to the Revolutionary Courts of Kermanshah on charges of “propagating
falsehoods with the goal of creating public anxiety,” and “using abusive language through writing in blogs.”
Navaye Vaght was supportive of Mir Hossein Mousavi during his elections campaign.
Niloufar Laripour, Chelcheragh and freelance
Imprisoned: February 2, 2010
According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, Laripour, a magazine journalist, poet, and lyricist, was
arrested on February 2 when she arrived at a Ministry of Information office after being summoned over the
telephone. Security officers later accompanied her to her home where they took personal items, including
notebooks and her computer. According to (http://hra-newsl.info/news/12936.aspx) the agency's report, she had
received a call at 6:30 p.m. to appear at the Ministry of Information office at 7 p.m. to answer a few questions.
Her sister told reporters that Laripour was not involved in political activities and that she was in charge of the
lyrics section of Che/cheragh magazine, which mostly publishes lyrics and history of religious songs. The same
report says she was active in Mir Hussein Mousavi's election campaign. Laripour is being held in Evin Prison. No
formal charges have been disclosed.
Nooshin Jafari, Etemad and freelance
Imprisoned: February 3, 2010
One of the youngest imprisoned journalists at 22, Jafari is a reporter with Etemad's arts
and culture section. According to (http://www.schrr.net/spip.php?article8569) the Web site
of the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, she was arrested after midnight on February
3 at her home. Security officers searched the premises and confiscated personal items
including her computer. Jafari is a founding member of the Committee of Human Rights
Reporters, though she has not been involved with the Web site since she started writing for
Etemad. No formal charges have been disclosed.
Naeemeh Doostdar, Jam-e-Jam
Imprisoned: February 6, 2010 p - pjs.,i
Doostdar is a journalist, writer, and poet who wrote for the arts and culture of the
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conservative pro-government daily Jam-e-Jam. Prior to Jam-e-Jam, she worked with Farhang (Culture) Radio
and magazines in the Hamshahri publishing group, which is owned by a Tehran municipality. According to
( http:llwww.roozonline.cornlpersianlnewslnewsitemlarticlel2ol 0/february/I 61-6b025a69e1 . html) Rooz Online,
Doostdar was arrested by security forces on February 6 and was transferred to Evin Prison.
The Web site of Reporters and Human Rights Activists, an organization that covers human rights abuses inside
Iran, reported (htt p://www.rhairan.net/archivesl3657) that no formal charges against Doostdar have been
disclosed.
Akbar Montajebi, Etemad
Imprisoned: February 7, 2010
ii
ontajebi is an experienced journalist who has written for Sobh-e Emruz, Shargh,
Hammihan, Nomoz, Mosharekat, Vaghaye Etefaghieh, Yas-e Now, Bahar, and
Etemad Me/li newspapers and Payam-e Emruz, Shahrvand-e Emruz, and
lrandokht magazines. He was arrested at 2 a.m. on February 7 at his home,
according to (hlt p:llwww.irangreenvoice.com/content/1 058) the reformist Web
_____ site Nedaye Sabz Azadt In an interview with Rooz Onilne, his wife expressed
concern (http://www.roozonIine.com/persianlnews/newsitem/articIe
/ 107/-a9a400eela.htmI) about Montajebi's arrest and prolonged detention. She
said he has only been allowed to call home twice during his detention, and that each call lasted only three minutes.
She said it appears that Montajebi is not allowed to discuss his location and his charges with his family. The
journalist's wife has multiple sclerosis, which she says has been exacerbated after her husband's arrest, rendering
her incapable of caring for their 10-year-old daughter.
Somayeh Momeni, Nasim-e Bidari
Imprisoned: February 7, 2010
Momeni, a journalist with Nasim-e Bidari magazine and a women's rights activist was arrested by security
officers at 3 a.m. on February 7 at her home and transferred to an unknown location, according to (http:/lhra-
news.org/news/I 2751 . aspx) the Human Rights Activists News Agency. Momeni had previously worked as a
reporter for the ISNA News Agency, reported (http:llwww.irangreenvoice.comlcontent/1 058) Nedaye Sabz e
Azadi, a pro-opposition news Web site. No formal charges have been disclosed.
Zeinab Kazemkhah, ISNA News Agency
Imprisoned: February 7, 2010
Kazemkhah, a reporter with IS NA, a state news agency, was arrested by Ministry of Information officers at 3
a.m. on February 7 at her home and transferred to an unknown location, according to
( http://www.feministschool.cornlspip.php?article42l8) The Feminist School, a Web site dedicated to Iranian
women's movement issues and news. The officers showed her a warrant for her arrest in which her charge was
stated as “participating in congregations,” the Nedaye Sabz-e Azadi Web site reported
( http://www.irangreenvoice.com/content/I 058) .
Ehsan Mehrabi, reporter, Farhikhtegan
Imprisoned: February 7, 2010
Mehrabi, a reporter on parliamentary affairs for Farhikhtegan newspaper, was arrested at his home on February
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7, according to (file:///C:/Documents%2 oand%2 oSettings/lwolfelLocal%2OSettingsllwolfe/Local%2 oSettingsllwolfe
/ Local%20Settings/Temporarv%2Olnternet%2OFiIes/OLKI OAlNedaye%2OSabz-e%2oAzadi%2OWeb%2osite) the
Nedaye Sabz-e Azadi Web site. According to (http:llws.wi.roozonline.comlpersianlnewslnewsitemlarticle
/ 107 1-a9a400ee la.html) a February 24 article on Rooz Online, in a phone call to his family, Mehrabi told them he
had not been told his charges. This was his second phone call to his family, which has been unable to receive
permission to visit him in prison. He has, however, asked his family to raise 30 million toomans (US$30,000) bail.
He told his wife that he did not know why he had been arrested.
Ha mid Mafi, freelance journalist and blogger
Imprisoned: February 9, 2010
According to (http://www.roozonline.com/persian/news/newsitem/article/2O1 0/february/I 61-6b025a69e1 . html )
Rooz Online, Mafi was arrested on February 9, in the city of Qazvin.
CPJ has been unable to determine where he is being held or what his charges are.
According to (http://chrr.us/spip.php?article3745) the Committee of Human Rights
Reporters, Mafi, who is a political writer, wrote for local publications in Qazvin,
including Hadis weekly, as well as in national publications such as Shargh newspaper,
and reformist papers such as Etemad, Etemad-e Mel/i, and Kargozaran. Mafi had
previously been the political editor of Farhang-e Ashti newspaper in Tehran and worked
there for several months until December 2008 when he returned to Qazvin.
Ali Malihi, Etemad, lrandokht, Shahrvand-e Emruz, and Mehrnameh
Imprisoned: February 9, 2010
Malihi, a journalist with multiple publications and a council member of the Iranian
Students Association (Advar-e Tahkim-e Vahdat) was arrested and transferred to an
unknown location on February 9, according to (http://www.schrr.net
/ spip.php?article8345) a report by the Committee of Human Rights Reporters.
According to (http:l/advarnews.biz/organization/I 0449.aspx) the Web site Advar News,
he is in solitary confinement in Ward 240 of Evin Prison. He was allowed to make one
telephone call to his family. His charges remain unknown.
On February 27, Jonbesh-e Rah-e Sabz, among other publications, published
( http://www.rahesabz.net/storv/II087/) a petition signed by 250 civil society activists
demanding his release, stating that he is a journalist who is not involved in politics.
Hengameh Shahidi, journalist, Etemad e Me /li
Imprisoned: February 25, 2010
According to (http://www.iranhumanriqhts.org/20I 0/03/six-year-prison-sentences-for-omid-montazeri-
and-hengameh-shahidi/) the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran's Web site,
Shahidi faces charges of “propagating against the regime, mutiny, illegal
RAHAN IA
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Feminist School congregation, membership in an organization that has acted against national
security, and insulting the president.”
Shahidi was previously arrested on June 30, 2009, and released on bail of 90 million toomans (US$90,000) on
October 31, 2009. In November, a court sentenced her to six years and three months in prison. She was released
pending an appeal.
On February 24, Branch 54 of the Revolutionary Courts affirmed her sentence, dropping only the charge of
“insulting the president.” Shahidi was arrested again the following day, according to (http://www.chrr.us
/ spip.php?article7O77) the Committee of Human Rights Reporters.
Shahidi worked for Mehdi Karroubi's presidential campaign and has written about Iranian and international
politics, human rights, and specifically women's rights. She is known as a reformist journalist and has written
many articles in support of “stop stoning” campaigns.
March 9, 2010 10:00 AM ET I Permalink (http://cpj.orci/2010/O3Iwith-52-journalists-in-jaiI-iran-hits-new-shamefu.php )
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