2 Journalists Sentenced in Iran for ‘US Collaboration’ After Their Reports on Mahsa Amini’s Death

On the first anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death, Iranian people gather in Milan to protest against the mandatory hijab, on Sept. 16, 2023. Davood Maeili/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

An Iranian court has sentenced two female journalists to prison time for alleged collaboration with the United States. Both have been in pre-trial detention since covering Mahsa Amini’s death in custody in September 2022.

According to Iran’s state news agency IRNA, Niloufar Hamedi, from the reformist newspaper Shargh, was sentenced to seven years in prison by The Tehran Revolutionary Court. Elaheh Mohammadi, from Ham-Mihan, also a reformist publication, received six years.

Reformists in Iran are seeking reform to Iran’s authoritarian Islamic government, which regularly attracts criticism for its significant constraints on civil liberties and human rights—values considered highly important by the United States, which the Court has deemed “hostile” to Iran.

Both journalists received an additional five years for acting against the country’s national security and another year for engaging in “propagandistic activities against the state.” The sentencing can reportedly be appealed within 20 days.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a nonprofit organization that promotes press freedom worldwide, if the appeals court upholds the verdicts, Ms. Hamedi will have to serve at least seven years, while Ms. Mohammadi must serve at least six years.

Ms. Hamedi previously attracted the ire of Iranian authorities for reporting on a 16-year-old girl’s murder and the self-immolation of several Iranian women hoping to escape domestic violence in the country.

Sherif Mansour, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, condemned the two journalists’ sentences.

“The convictions of Niloufar Hamedi and Elaheh 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,” Mr. Mansour said.

A trash bin is burning as anti-riot police arrive during a protest over the death of a young woman who had been detained for violating the country's conservative dress code, in downtown Tehran, Iran, on Sept. 20, 2022. AP Photo

The office of the U.S. special envoy for Iran also came out to defend the two women with an Oct. 22 post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Niloufar and Elaheh should never have been jailed, and we condemn their sentences,” Deputy Special Envoy Abram Paley wrote.

“The Iranian regime jails journalists because it fears the truth.”

The U.S. special envoy for Iran is responsible for developing, coordinating, and implementing the State Department’s Iran policy and reports directly to the secretary of state.

Earlier this year, Ms. Hamedi and Ms. Mohammadi were honored in Time Magazine’s list of the world’s most influential people.

Along with a third imprisoned journalist, Narges Mohammadi, the pair were also awarded the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize by the United Nations “for their commitment to truth and accountability.”

Arrested After Reporting on Death in Custody

Ms. Hamedi and Ms. Mohammadi have both been in pre-trial detention since Sept. 22, 2022, after being among the first journalists to report on the hospitalization and Sept. 16, 2022, death in custody of Mahsa Amini.

Iran’s morality police in Tehran held Ms. Amini for allegedly having a loose head scarf, a severe offense under the country’s Shi'ite version of Sharia law. The morality police claim that Ms. Amini suffered a heart attack and died of natural causes. Later, it was claimed that she had a neurological disorder that led to her death.

Her family says that Ms. Amini didn’t suffer from any medical conditions and claims that they were denied the chance to have an independent autopsy performed by a doctor of their choice.

The suspicious circumstances around the death, specifically a healthy 22-year-old woman with no history of health issues dying in custody, kicked off months of protests in dozens of cities across Iran. Solidarity protests were also held around the world.

At the time, the Iranian government scrambled to contain the growing unrest. Allegations of excessive force from authorities trying to regain control soon followed. More than 500 protestors reportedly died in clashes with Iranian authorities, and tens of thousands were detained.

Exile Iranians of the National Council of Resistance of Iran gather in front of Iran's embassy in Berlin on Sept. 20, 2022, after the death of an Iranian woman held by Iran's morality police. Michael Sohn/AP Photo

Many world leaders swiftly condemned the death of Ms. Amini and the crackdowns on protestors. The Biden administration announced sanctions in September 2022 on Iran’s morality police “for abuse and violence against Iranian women and the violation of the rights of peaceful Iranian protesters.”

At least 95 journalists have been arrested in the wake of the protests, according to the CPJ. Iran ranked as the world’s worst jailer of journalists in the group’s 2022 prison census, which documented those behind bars as of Dec. 1, 2022.

Elnaz Mohammadi, head of the social issues desk at the Hammihan newspaper and the twin sister of Elaheh Mohammadi, was arrested in February for unknown reasons. She was released a week later on bail. Her charges and court date aren’t publicly available at this time.

Teenage Girl Brain Dead After Alleged Encounter with Police

Earlier this month, a teenage Iranian girl fell into a coma at a Tehran train station. According to an Oct. 22 report from Iranian state media, she has since been declared brain dead, sparking fears that another round of unrest and protests could be around the corner.

The hospitalization of the 16-year-old girl has led to accusations by a rights group and activists that she was beaten into a coma by Iran’s morality police.

According to Hengaw, a human rights organization, Armita Garawand sustained a severe physical assault by morality police for not complying with national hijab rules.

The state-run media claims that the girl fainted after a drop in blood pressure, leading her to hit the side of the train carriage.

Fars, Iran’s state news agency, published an interview with the girl’s parents in which they say that she wasn’t attacked. However, there have been accusations that family members were coerced into making the statements.