JINA MAHSA AMINI
The face of Iran's protests. Her life, her dreams and her death.
In memory of Jina 'Mahsa' Amini, the cornerstone of the 'Zan. Zendagi. Azadi revolution.
16 February 2023 | By Gino d'Artali
And also
Read all about the assasination of the 22 year young Jhina Mahsa Amini or Zhina Mahsa Amini (Kurdistan-Iran) and the start of the Zan, Zendagi, Azadi (Women, life, freedom) revolution in Iran  2022
and the latest news about the 'Women Live Freedom' Revolution per month in 2023: July 31 - 16--July 20 -1--June 30 - 15--June 15-1--May 31 -16-- May 15-1--April--March--Feb--Jan
And
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When one hurts or kills a women
one hurts or kills hummanity and is an antrocitie.
Gino d'Artali
and: My mother (1931-1997) always said to me <Mi figlio, non esistono notizie <vecchie> perche puoi imparare qualcosa da qualsiasi notizia.> Translated: <My son, there is no such thing as so called 'old' news because you can learn something from any news.>
Gianna d'Artali.

Preface by Gino d'Artali: It looks like Khamenei was not joking when the crackdown on journalists really took off now but that's old news really because ever since the killing of Jina Mahsa Amini it really took off where the hunt on dissent journalists has been declared fully open with no restrictions on what it takes to bring 'those criminals down'. However, rest assured, 'the criminals' will keep reporting 'till the last drop in their pens.

Iranwire - July 26, 2023
<I Consider Myself the People's Voice,> Iranian Journalist Tells Court
The second and final hearing in the high-profile trial of Iranian journalist Elahe Mohammadi took place on July 26, with the defendant denying the charges against her, her husband says. <The hearing concluded with the final defense. Elahe strongly denied all the charges, and we are hopeful that her clear defense presented in court will be duly considered,> Saeed Parsaee wrote on Twitter. In her closing arguments, Mohammadi told the judge presiding Branch 15 of Tehran Revolutionary Court: <I can proudly say I have never had any connections with foreign governments and that my loyalty lies with the people, as I consider myself their voice,> according to her husband. Mohammadi, a reporter for Hammihan newspaper, and fellow journalist Niloofar Hamedi of Shargh newspaper were arrested for reporting on the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini in September last year.
They went on trial behind closed doors in May on charges including collaborating with the <hostile> government of the United States, colluding to commit crimes against national security, and engaging in propaganda activities against the regime. Hamedi's trial ended on July 26, with a preliminary verdict expected in the next few days, her husband said. Human rights groups and media freedom watchdogs have condemned the arrest and prosecution of the two journalists, as well as the Islamic Republic's ongoing clampdown on dissent and the media. In her final statement to the court, Mohammadi condemned the mass arrest of journalists and urged the authorities to listen to the people, <especially women and journalists who express the concerns of the populace.> <Journalists who have fulfilled their professional duties should not be subjected to lengthy periods of temporary detention,> she said, adding, <Both Niloofar Hamedi and I are being tried as representatives of the noble and suffering Iranian press.> >>
Read more here:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118889-i-consider-myself-the-peoples-voice-iranian-journalist-tells-court/

Ncri - Womens committee - in Women's news - July 25, 2023
<<Journalist Marzieh Mahmoudi fined and sentenced to internal exile
A judicial authority sentenced Journalist Marzieh Mahmoudi another time to pay a cash penalty and go to internal exile in the remote city of Torbat-e Jam in Razavi Khorasan province, northeastern Iran, just 40 kilometers from the border from Afghanistan. Journalist Marzieh Mahmoudi stated in her tweet, <Because of a renewed complaint by (mullah) Hamid Rasaii (a former MP), I was sentenced with a 24-million-Toman cash penalty and one year of exile to Torbat-e Jam.> Last year, Hamid Rasaii made highly offensive remarks about the protesters in Iran and was criticized by many. Marzieh Mahmoudi posted a comment on her page, which led to Rasaii's complaint against her. She was fined 24 million Tomans for a single tweet, a sentence later commuting to 6 million Tomans, which she paid.
Marzieh Mahmoudi is a journalist and the editor of Tejaratnews.com.
Such punishments handed down by the Iranian Judiciary seek to restrict freedom of speech even more than the existing conditions. The mullahs are free to foulmouth young freedom lovers in Iran who risk their lives for doing so. However, a journalist commenting on the mullahs’ offensive words receives a disproportionate punishment.>>
Read more here, especially also about <Political prisoner Zahra Saeedianju banned from visits>... :
https://women.ncr-iran.org/2023/07/25/journalist-marzieh-mahmoudi/

Iranwire - July 25, 2023
<<Trial of Iranian Journalist Hamedi Ends; Verdict Expected in Coming Days
The second and last hearing in the trial of Niloofar Hamedi, a journalist imprisoned in Iran for 10 months, was held on July 25, with a preliminary verdict expected in the next few days, her husband said. <I'm proud of my performance> as a journalist, Mohammad Hossein Ajorlo quoted his wife as telling Branch 15 of Tehran Revolutionary Court. Ajorlo said that her lawyers were granted the opportunity to present their arguments during the closed-door session. Hamedi, a reporter for Shargh newspaper, was arrested for reporting on the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini in September last year. Her first hearing on charges of collaborating with the <hostile> government of the United States, colluding to commit crimes against national security, and engaging in propaganda activities against the regime was held in May. Elahe Mohammadi, another woman journalist arrested in September for covering the events surrounding Amini’s death, went on trial at the same time. The second hearing in Mohammadi’s closed-door trial is scheduled to be held on July 26. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) <stands in solidarity with Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammdi, their families and all Iranian journalists who have been harassed, imprisoned, and persecuted for doing their work, and calls on the international community to hold Iran accountable,> CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna said in a statement on July 24. <Trying journalists in closed hearings is a travesty of justice and the strongest indication that there is no evidence of wrongdoing,> he added.>>
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118842-trial-of-iranian-journalist-hamedi-ends-verdict-expected-in-coming-days/

Iranwire - July 25, 2023
<<Iranian Journalist Jaffari Jailed on False News Charges
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has urged Iranian authorities to immediately release Seyed Mostafa Jaffari, a journalist who was re-arrested this week, and stop <arbitrarily locking up members of the press for reporting on matters of public interest.> <Journalists must be able to work without fear that they will be subject to arrest and detention for covering news about officials and lawmakers,> Sherif Mansour, CPJ's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, said in a statement on July 24. Earlier on that day, Jaffari was arrested in the central city of Qazvin on charges filed by Branch 10 of the Revolutionary Court for allegedly publishing false news, according to media reports. Authorities previously arrested Jaffari, editor-in-chief and publisher of the local news website Titrqavin.ir, on July 12, after he published an interview with a member of parliament from Qazvin province. He was released on bail after five days. In that article, which has since been taken offline, Titrqavin.ir covered alleged hostility between the MP and Iran's tourism minister. In July 2022, Jaffari was charged with spreading false news and detained after publishing a report containing criticism of medical officials' performance in Qazvin. The journalist was sentenced to two years in prison along with a two-year ban from practicing journalism, and had not begun serving his prison term as of July 24. It was not immediately clear which case prompted his latest arrest.>>
Read more here:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118831-iranian-journalist-jaffari-jailed-on-false-news-charges/

NCRI - Womens committee - in Women's news - July 24, 2023
<<The Distorted Justice System in Iran Targets Truth-Tellers
Instead of denouncing the violence perpetrated by a mullah, the clerical regime's prosecutor announced their intention to find and punish whoever shot the footage and posted it on social media. On Saturday, July 22, a video clip went viral, depicting a mullah brutalizing a woman who had protested against his trespassing at her house in Sheshlou village, located in Gilan, northern Iran. The mullah in question was identified as Seifollah Gohari, the head of the political-ideological bureau and a Friday prayer leader in a government agency in Langrood. The Iranian official media reported that the battered woman was the mullah's sister-in-law in a bid to downplay the mullah's violence against a defenseless woman. His case was referred to the Special Court of the Clergy for examination. However, the media quoted the prosecutor of Langrood, Seyyed Hashem Mir-Hosseini, stating that they would diligently pursue, identify, and take serious action against the person(s) responsible for posting the video on social media. (The state-run Entekhab.ir, July 23, 2023) The clerical regime consistently prosecutes and punishes individuals who post videos revealing the regime's oppressive measures. They have enacted laws that criminalize the publication of material that disturbs public opinion, significantly if it exposes the truth about the mullahs' conduct. Anyone found guilty of doing so would face arrest and punishment. For instance, during the poisoning of schoolgirls throughout the country, individuals who filmed and shared evidence on social media or revealed any clues were identified and imprisoned. In this way, the clerical regime seeks to cover up the corruption plaguing the regime and fend off public outrage.>>
Source:
https://women.ncr-iran.org/2023/07/24/justice-system-in-iran/
Opinion by Gino d'Artali: The by the mullah battered woman was I'd say a 'citizen-journalist' reporting about an un-acceptable violation of women's rights!

Iranwire - July 25, 2023
<<Closed-Door Trials of Iranian Journalists: A <Travesty of Justice>
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has strongly condemned the continuation of the closed-door trials of two women journalists who have been imprisoned in Iran for 10 months for reporting on the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini in September 2022. <CPJ stands in solidarity with Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammdi, their families and all Iranian journalists who have been harassed, imprisoned, and persecuted for doing their work, and calls on the international community to hold Iran accountable,> CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna said in a statement on July 24. <Trying journalists in closed hearings is a travesty of justice and the strongest indication that there is no evidence of wrongdoing,> he added. The second round of separate trials of Mohammadi, a reporter for Hammihan newspaper and Hamedi of Shargh newspaper are scheduled to be held on July 25 and July 26, respectively, in Branch 15 of Tehran Revolutionary Court. Their first closed-door hearings on charges of collaborating with the <hostile> government of the United States, colluding to commit crimes against national security, and engaging in propaganda activities against the regime were held in May. Their lawyers said that they were not granted the opportunity to defend the journalists in court. Human rights groups and media freedom watchdogs have condemned the arrest and prosecution of Mohammadi and Hamedi, as well as the Islamic Republic's ongoing clampdown on dissent and the media. Iran ranked as the world's worst jailer of journalists in CPJ's 2022 prison census, which documented those behind bars as of December 1. According to the New York-based media freedom watchdog, the Islamic Republic has detained at least 95 journalists during months-long nationwide protests sparked by Amini's death.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118826-closed-door-trials-of-iranian-journalists-a-travesty-of-justice/

Iranwire - July 24, 2023
<<An online campaign has been launched to call for the release of two women journalists who have been imprisoned in Iran for over 300 days for covering the events surrounding Mahsa Amini's death in police custody. Friends and families of Niloofar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi initiated the #Elahe_Niloofar hashtag campaign on July 23, after the husbands of Hamedi and Mohammadi announced that their second court hearings were set for July 25 and 26, respectively. Elnaz Mohammadi, a journalist herself, expressed her heartfelt longing for her imprisoned sister. <You have always been this image for me. Firm and humble. We are waiting for your day of freedom. Waiting for the day of freedom of Niloofar too, our other sister,> she tweeted. Well-known civil activist and political prisoner Arash Sadeghi also joined the online campaign by posting a picture of the two imprisoned journalists on his Twitter account. <Journalism is not just a job; it is a belief in discovering the truth. Anyone who seeks enlightenment through the light of truth will find a prominent place in society. There is no place for a journalist in prison,> he wrote. Barbad Golshiri, a renowned Iranian sculptor and artist, joined the virtual campaign and wrote: <#Elahe_Niloofer, your names will forever be associated with the progressive, beautiful, and poignant #women-life-freedom movement.> Aboozar Zaman, the son of the late singer Hossein Zaman, known for his critical stance toward the government, described Hamedi and Mohammadi as <tellers of truth> and demanded their immediate release. Social activist Mohammad Karim Asayesh praised the two journalists <not only for being women's voices in their editorial works but also for amplifying their voices in the women's movement, advocating issues such as fighting harassment and promoting women's presence in stadiums.> Mansoureh Hosseini, a TV anchor and reporter, said that Hamedi and Mohammadi <are the living proof of this government's hostility toward women, life, and freedom.> Hamedi, a reporter for Shargh newspaper, and Mohammadi of Hammihan newspaper went on trial in May on charges including collaborating with the <hostile> government of the United States, colluding to commit crimes against national security, and engaging in propaganda activities against the regime. The charges could carry the death penalty. Human rights groups and media freedom watchdogs have condemned the arrest and prosecution of Mohammadi and Hamedi, as well as the Islamic Republic's ongoing clampdown on dissent and the media. Their lawyers said that they were not granted the opportunity to defend the journalists in court.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118801-join-elahe_niloofar-to-support-jailed-iranian-journalists/

Iranwire - July 24, 2023 - by Jailed human rights activist Narges Mohammadi and her tweet on July 22, 2023
<<Mohammadi: <Tyrannical> Theocracy Uses Forced Hijab to Suppress Women
Jailed human rights activist Narges Mohammadi has responded to a new round of pressure by the government of the Islamic Republic to impose mandatory hijab on women, calling it a conspiracy by the country's theocracy to subjugate women. <Contrary to claims by the theocracy, covering women's hair was not meant to 'protect women's dignity' and 'control men's sexual urge'> Mohammadi said in an Instagram message on July 22. <In fact, covering our hair was to preserve tyranny and to satisfy men's dictatorial lust. Now the world is witnessing that women's 'power of refusal' has broken the 'tyrannical power' of theocracy.> <Forced hijab was a conspiracy by the tyrannical government to expand suppression, to institutionalize submission, to enforce (hidden) violence> in order to subjugate women, dominate them and remove them from the public sphere, she continued.
<The fact is that forced hijab is not only a 'women's problem;' it is the problem of the whole society; it is a problem for freedom, for deliverance from tyranny, for justice, for overthrowing injustice and oppression, for realizing peace, democracy and human rights and for getting rid of violence and discrimination. Therefore, nobody can ignore this issue, regardless of creed, ideology and beliefs. <We, the women, have achieved the historical power and position to bring about revolutionary changes...and we can have no doubt that our power to refuse and to disobey forced hijab would defeat the tyrannical power of theocracy.> Mohammadi is one of the best-known human rights activists in Iran. She has been harassed, arrested and imprisoned many times and is currently serving a 16-year prison sentence in Tehran's Evin Prison. The outspoken activist has received many awards and accolades, including the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize and the Andrei Sakharov Prize of the American Physical Society.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/women/118788-mohammadi-tyrannical-theocracy-uses-forced-hijab-to-suppress-women/

NCRI - Women committee - in Women's news - July 23, 2023
<<....
|Journalist Nazila Maroofian|
Nazilla Maroofian in the women's ward of Evin
Recent reports indicate that Nazilla Maroofian has been transferred from the Intelligence Ministry's detention center in Ward 209 of Evin to the women's ward of the prison. Nazila Maroofian is a young journalist from Saqqez who studied at Tehran's Allameh Tabatabaii University and used to work with Dideban-e Iran and Rouydad24 websites. She was summoned to the first branch of the Evin Courthouse on July 8th, where she was arrested after reporting in and then transferred to Evin Prison. On July 4th, security forces raided Ms. Maroofian's residence and confiscated her electronic devices. Nazila Maroofian was initially arrested on October 30, 2022, and confined to Ward 209 of Evin. She was later transferred to Qarchak Prison and released on bail of 600 million Tomans after a while. In February 2023, Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran sentenced Nazila Maroofian to two years in prison, imposed a cash fine of 15 million Tomans, and issued a five-year ban on her leaving the country. The charges against her were <propaganda against the state> and<dissemination of falsities to disturb public opinion through publishing an interview with Mahsa Amini's father.> The prison sentence for this young journalist has been suspended for five years.>>
Source:
https://women.ncr-iran.org/2023/07/23/mahsa-mogouii/ 

Iranwire - July 20, 2023
Global Press Association <Deeply> Concerned over Fate of Jailed Iranian Journalist Hamedi
The International Sports Press Association (AIPS) is <deeply concerned> about the situation of Iranian journalist Niloofar Hamedi, who has been behind bars for 10 months for her coverage of Mahsa Amini's death in police custody, a spokesperson says. <AIPS and the Sports Journalists Association of Iran (ISJA), have been actively engaged in addressing her case,> AIPS spokeswoman Azra Isic said in a statement sent to IranWire on July 19. <Throughout her 300 days of detention, we have consistently advocated for Ms Hamedi's release and have raised our concerns with relevant authorities," she added. "We have initiated multiple correspondences with Iranian officials, to seek more information about her well-being and the circumstances surrounding her arrest.>
Hamedi was a sports reporter for a long time.
The journalist was arrested in September last year after she took a photograph of Amini's parents hugging each other in a Tehran hospital a few days after the 22-year-old Amini died, sparking months of nationwide protests. The picture was published by the Shargh daily. Hamedi is accused of collaborating with the <hostile> government of the United States, colluding to commit crimes against national security, and engaging in propaganda activities against the system. She vehemently rejected all the accusations against her as her trial kicked off behind closed doors on May 30. On July 18, her husband Mohammad Hossein Ajarlo shared a picture of his wife on his social media accounts and wrote: <It has been 300 days since the unlawful arrest of Niloofar Hamedi, solely for the crime of speaking the truth. However, we refuse to surrender. Our strength surpasses yours.>
In a speech on July 2, AIPS President Gianni Merlo called for the release of Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi, another woman journalist jailed over her coverage of Amini's death. He said that Hamedi and Mohammadi <have been in prison for months because they committed the crime of honestly doing their job.> <...we are deeply concerned about Ms Hamedi's situation, and not only her situation but also the other Iranian colleagues in jail. We empathize with the prolonged uncertainty surrounding their detention,> Isic said in her statement. <We can confirm that our association, AIPS, has consistently raised awareness of Ms Hamedi's plight during various AIPS events,> she added. <We firmly believe in utilizing our platform to advocate for press freedom and the safety of journalists worldwide.> The Iranian Association of Sports Journalists has not taken any concrete actions in support of the journalists arrested during last year's nationwide protests sparked by Amini's death. The association only issued a vague statement that did not mention the names of any of the jailed journalists. The head of the organization, Abdulhamid Ahmadi, is known to be associated with the security institutions of the Islamic Republic.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118684-global-press-association-deeply-concerned-over-fate-of-jailed-iranian-journalist-hamedi/

Preface by Gino d'Artali: I unclude the below story because journalists are under siege around the world but if one would make a Top 5 list then Iran and Turkey would be part of it and I include it also to let them know they're not alone struggling to get justice done.
JINHA - Women's news agency - July 18, 2023 - by MEDİNE MAMEDOGLU
<<Journalist Nese Budak: A serious isolation has been imposed in prison
Amed- 15 journalists, who were arrested on June 16, 2022 as part of an investigation launched by the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office for their journalistic activities, were released from prison on July 12, 2023 at the first hearing. At the hearing, the defenses of the journalists refuted the 700-page indictment prepared against them. In an interview with NuJINHA, Nese Toprak, one of the released journalists, talked about the ongoing rights violations in prison.
'We waited for 13 months in prison to stand trial'
Nese Toprak emphasized that they had been arrested although there was no concrete evidence or allegations against them and said: <We waited for the indictment to be prepared in order to learn the accusations against us. Our arrest was unlawful. The indictment was prepared after we were held in prison for 10 months. They made great efforts to find accusations against us because there was no evidence. A 700-page indictment was prepared against us. We read the indictment with a smile on our face. You always feel comfortable when you know what you did and why you were arrested. We waited for 13 months in prison to stand trial. As our colleagues say, we judged them, they did not judge us. We were unlawfully held in prison for 13 months without any concrete evidence.>
'A serious isolation has been imposed in prison'
Nese Toprak told us that they had witnessed many rights violations in the Diyarbakır Women's Closed Prison. <A serious isolation has been imposed in the prison. We were not allowed to speak with other prisoners. There were cameras in wards. They watched us for 24 hours. Sick prisoners were handcuffed when they were transferred to hospital. We started a hunger strike to protest rights violations faced by prisoners. There were dozens of prisoners, who were not released although they had completed their sentences.> Nese Toprak is also a painter. When she was held in prison, she demanded equipment to practice her art; however, she was refused. She made a painting showing a woman having long hair to mark the International Women's Day on March 8; however, her painting was taken from her. <There was a resistance in Iran that started following the killing of Jina Mahsa Amini by Iran's morality police. I wanted to make an artwork about Jina Mahsa Amini to mark the International Women's Day. I portrayed a woman having long hair. I tried to send it by cargo; however, the prison administration confiscated it.>
'We will keep reporting'
Nese Toprak told us that they would keep reporting to reveal rights violations in prison. <Women face obstacles everywhere. Women always resist them. Journalism and art are tools for women to resist obstacles. We could not do journalism in prison and we were deprived of our rights. We are determined to keep reporting, to reveal rights violations.> >>
Source:
https://jinhaagency1.com/en/actual/journalist-nese-budak-a-serious-isolation-has-been-imposed-in-prison-33573

Iranwire - July 19, 2023
<<Prague to Extradite Georgian to US Over Plot to Kill Iranian Dissident
The Czech Republic will extradite a Georgian national wanted in the United States over a plot to kill Iranian-American journalist and activist Masih Alinejad. <I consider the extradition of Polad Omarov to the United States....the correct decision after considering all circumstances,> Czech Justice Minister Pavel Blazek said in a tweet on July 18. Alinejad also took to Twitter to <thank the Czech Republic for allowing the extradition of Polad Omarov, who was indicted in a plot by the Islamic Republic to murder me, to the United States.> <I also want to thank the US law enforcement agencies who will soon have the 3 men who were behind this nefarious plot behind bars,> she added. Omarov was indicted in the United States in January together with two other members of a criminal gang that allegedly undertook a Tehran-backed plot to kill Alinejad. Czech police detained Omarov in January, and the Prague City Court ruled in May he could be extradited to the United States. Czech media said he could be extradited within days. Omarov and alleged gang leader Rafat Amirov, who lives in Iran, led the plot to kill Alinejad at her home in New York last year, the US Department of Justice has said. The pair sent US citizen Khalid Mehdiyev $30,000 to carry out the murder. Amirov was taken into custody in the United States in January. Mehdiyev was arrested near Alinejad's New York home in July last year with a loaded AK-47 assault rifle. The trio was charged with murder-for-hire, conspiracy and money laundering, charges that bring cumulatively up to 40 years in prison. Alinejad has been a target of previous plots by Tehran. In July 2021, the US authorities charged four Iranian intelligence operatives and one US resident for plotting to kidnap her and take her back to Iran.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/news/118646-prague-to-extradite-georgian-to-us-over-plot-to-kill-iranian-dissident/

American-Iranian journalist living in the diaspora miss Masih Alinejad
Indept info by Gino d'Artali about the Iranian journalist miss Masih Alinejad living in the diaspora in the USA: Alinejad works as a presenter/producer at VOA Persian Service, a correspondent for Radio Farda, a frequent contributor for Manoto television, and a contributing editor for IranWire. Alinejad focuses on criticism of the status of human rights in Iran, especially women's rights in Iran.
About IRANWIRE: Bahari has been an ex-prisoner because he is a journalist and was tortured because of it and after his release he went to live in the diaspora in the USA and launched IranWire in 2014, <to empower Iranian citizen journalists by creating a forum in which young Iranians can discuss national and local news, providing training modules and putting Iranian citizen journalists inside the country in touch with professional Iranian journalists.> Untill today IranWire is a collaborative news website run by professional Iranian journalists in the diaspora and citizen journalists inside Iran.

Iranwire - July 12, 2023
Iranian Journalist Maroofian Re-Arrested amid Media Crackdown
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has urged Iranian authorities to release Nazila Maroofian, a journalist who was re-arrested last week, and drop any charges against her. Maroofian, a reporter for the state-run news website Rouydad24, was taken into custody on July 8 after she responded to a summons at a court in Tehran's Evin prison. She was then transferred to an undisclosed location, and she has since not contacted her family, friends or colleagues, CPJ quoted a person familiar with the case as saying. In a statement on July 11, Sherif Mansour, the New York-based media freedom watchog's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, called for Maroofian’s immediate release, saying that <members of the press must be allowed to live without constant fear that they will be harassed and detained.> Maroofian was previously arrested in November and was imprisoned for more than two months for her coverage of the nationwide anti-government protests sparked by the September death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. Authorities released the journalist on bail in January 9 this year and convicted her in absentia of <spreading propaganda against the system> and <false news> on January 28, CPJ reported. Maroofian was sentenced to two years in prison and a five-year ban on leaving the country, which she appealed. The authorities cited an interview she conducted with Amini's father as part of their case against her. After Maroofian's conviction was upheld, the journalist was waiting to be summoned to serve her sentence, the source told CPJ. It was not immediately clear whether she was summoned to serve her sentence or because she is facing new charges.
Iranian security forces have cracked down hard on last year's protests, killing more than 520 people and unlawfully detaining over 19,000, activists say. Following biased trials, the judiciary has handed down stiff sentences, including the death penalty, to protesters. According to CPJ, at least 95 journalists were arrested in the wake of the widespread protests, making Iran the world's worst jailer of journalists in the group's 2022 prison census. Many journalists received harsh sentences related to those arrests, and about 80 were released on bail, the watchdog said, adding that authorities have recently begun summoning them to start their sentences.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118414-iranian-journalist-maroofian-re-arrested-amid-media-crackdown
 
NCRI - Womens committee - in Womens news - July 6, 2023
<<Nazila Maroofian, a 23-year-old journalist, is summoned to Evin Courthouse
Nazila Maroofian, 23 and a journalist, has been summoned to the first branch of Evin Courthouse on Saturday, July 8, 2023. On Tuesday, July 4, 2023, Nazila Maroofian, who is originally from Saqqez but resides in Tehran, published a Twitter post in which she said, <Officials from the Ministry of Intelligence have searched my house and confiscated some of my digital devices, including my mobile phone and laptop.> Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran sentenced Nazila Maroofian to two years in prison and other supplementary punishments in February 2023. The prison sentence for Ms. Maroofian was suspended for five years. Also, two separate cases were filed against Nazila Maroofian, one of which was referred to Branch 26 of Tehran's General and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office and the other to Branch 1024 of the 2nd Criminal Court of Tehran.
Who is Nazila Maroofian?
Nazila Maroofian, a student at Tehran's Allameh Tabatabai University and a reporter for Rouydad 24, was arrested on October 30, 2022, by order of the Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office based in Evin Prison in Tehran. She was arrested for publishing her interviews with the father of Mahsa Amini on the Event 24 website in October and November 2022. She was confined in Ward 209 of Evin. She was eventually transferred to Qarchak Prison and released on bail after a while. Before being arrested, Nazila Maroofian wrote in a Twitter post, <They won't let me publish my interview a few days ago with Mahsa Amini's father. First, they called my father in the city....then they called me that there was a warrant for my arrest. If you publish it, you will be sent to Evin on such and such charges!> Nazila Maroofian also worked as a reporter in Dideban-e Iran. Nazila Maroofian suffered an infarct before standing trial on January 4, 2023. This young journalist was under much mental pressure and psychological torture in prison and interrogation. Since her arrest, she had been confined in solitary confinement or cells with few prisoners. On the day of the trial, she fainted and had an infraction. Miss Maroofian was transferred to Mofatteh Hospital in Shahr-e Rey, but she was returned to Qarchak Prison without completing the tests. During the interrogation in the detention center, she underwent severe pressure and threats from the interrogators to make forced confessions. And due to these pressures, she suffered two mild heart strokes.>>
Source:
https://women.ncr-iran.org/2023/07/06/nazila-maroofian-2/

Iranwire - July 4, 3023
<<Three Iranian Journalists Go on Trial amid <Relentless> Crackdown on Media
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged Iranian authorities to drop the charges against three women journalists who are being prosecuted for their reporting and writing on social media, and to put an end to the ongoing <harassment, prosecution, and punishment> of those exercising their rights to free speech. Saeideh Shafie, Mehrnoush Zarei and Nasim Sultan Beigi went on trial on July 3 before Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court on <propaganda> and <national security> charges. Each of these charges carries a sentence of up to five years in prison. <Iran's judiciary has once again begun summoning and harassing journalists and human rights defenders, punishing anyone who refuses to remain silent,> Tara Sepehri Far, senior Iran researcher at the New York-based HRW, said in a statement. <The authorities have been relentless in prosecuting and punishing anyone reporting on the social issues and grievances that were central to the protests over the last months.> Shafie, an economic journalist who had worked with several Iranian newspapers, was arrested in Tehran February and was transferred to Evin prison. She was released in March upon posting bail of 500 million tomans ($12,150). The charges against her relate to several articles she wrote on topics such as rising poverty and the government's management of energy subsidies and public resources. Zarei, who reports on health care and social issues for various Iranian outlets, was arrested in Tehran in January and was also transferred to Evin prison and released on bail in February. The journalist was charged over her articles on reproductive laws and the state of Iran's national parks. Sultan Beigi, who is also a women's rights activist, was arrested at Tehran's Khomeini International Airport in January as she attempted to leave Iran. The authorities transferred her to Evin prison before releasing her on a 1 billion Tomans ($24,350) bail in February. Her charges are based on her collaboration with domestic and foreign media outlets. She previously worked as a journalist with several Iranian publications. According to HRW, the Islamic Republic <has a long history of using vaguely defined national security charges against protesters, dissidents, and journalists in trials that fall grossly short of international standards.> <The international community should keep cases of journalists and human rights defenders at the center of its engagement with Iran,> Sepehri Far said. <States should be demanding that Iran drop these and other ridiculous charges that authorities have brought against journalists.> >>
Read more here:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118166-three-iranian-journalists-go-on-trial-amid-relentless-crackdown-on-media/

Iranwire - July 4, 3023
<<Iranian Journalist Hossein Yazdi Arrested; Whereabouts Unknown
Iranian security forces arrested Hossein Yazdi, the director of the Iran Times news agency, his daughter Saba said on her Twitter account, amid a crackdown on dissent and the media. There is no immediate information about the reasons for Yazdi's arrest, the security agency behind it and the journalist's whereabouts. Yazdi was previously arrested on Iranwire - July 4, 2023
December 5, 2022, and subsequently transferred to Isfahan Central Prison. He was released in February this year as part of an <amnesty.> According to the New-York based Committee to Protect Journalists Iranian authorities have arrested at least 95 journalists since September, when the death in the custody of morality police of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini sparked months of nationwide protests. The security forces cracked down hard on the demonstrations, killing more than 520 people and unlawfully detaining over 19,000. Following biased trials, the judiciary has handed down stiff sentences, including the death penalty, to protesters. Known for its harsh internet censorship, which includes banning thousands of websites, the Islamic Republic has periodically suppressed or cut internet access for most Iranians to prevent them from accessing and disseminating information online and from safe online communications.>>
Source:
https://iranwire.com/en/journalism-is-not-a-crime/118164-iranian-journalist-hossein-yazdi-arrested-whereabouts-unknown/

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