Mullahs continue suppressing, violating rights of journalists

Nora Bendary

The mullahs’ regime in Tehran continues its oppression methods to silence voices that oppose its policies and corruption.

A report by Iran International said security forces have raided the homes of at least six journalists in Tehran in the past ten days. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) agents confiscated documents and reporting equipment.

In response, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has strongly condemned “these arbitrary raids and demanded the authorities return material seized.”

IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said the intimidation and harassment of journalists is a deplorable method of silencing public debate by governments.

He added that Iran’s citizens have the right to be informed by independent journalists, who should be allowed to work without the fear of secret agents raiding their homes and stealing the equipment they need to do their work.

Iranian security forces in the past have repeatedly harassed the family members of Persian speaking media abroad. The properties of some of these Iranian journalists have been seized by the judiciary, the report added.

Mehdi Mahmoudian, former journalist and human rights activist have also been arrested by the IRGC agents.

In an audio file released in some media, Mahmoudian’s interrogator says to him in reaction to his tweet calling on all to attend the memorial of the victims of the Ukrainian plane: “I’ll take you to Evin prison myself and tend to you there.”

In another violation, Iran’s intelligence organs have summoned at least 21 Iranian journalists across the country, threatening them not to speak about government disinformation over the downing of a Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) passenger plane on January 8 over the capital city Tehran.

In its latest report on Iran, Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reiterated on Thursday, February 7, that it deplores the harassment of dozens of Iranian journalists, who have been interrogated, threatened, searched and forced to close social media accounts for daring to protest about the fact that they have been discredited as information sources because they reported a “state lie as the truth.”

In a previous statement to the Reference, Iranian affairs researcher Iyad al-Majali explained that the methods used by the regime in Tehran and its militant IRGC arm against opposition journalists and media professionals confirms that it is working clearly and directly to counter protests, both domestically and abroad, and also exposes the poor living and economic conditions afflicting the country.

Majali added that the Iranian regime confronts all voices opposing it, which it attempts to explain on the pretext that these voices are nothing but foreign plots hatched in the dark to topple the ruling regime. So the regime will not stop and will not hesitate to take all possible measures to suppress dissenting voices, including by means of assassination.