Iran condemns a journalist for publishing “lies”

Masoud Haidari was the executive director of an Iranian press agency called ILNA, which often reported on workers’ demostrations and arrests of Human Rights’ activists. ILNA was shut on July by the authorities and recently was reopened under a new administration. Political analysts saw the move to shut ILNA as part of a much wider campaign against dissident voices, while Iran is suffering international pressure as a result of its “nuclear program”.

Haidari was sentenced to six months in prison for “publishing lies”. He was also condemned to pay a fine of 1,500,000 rials ($160) “for defamation”. The fine substituted the lashes’ punishment.

He had been sued by a University and a high-ranking civil servant from the Iranian Ministery of Labour.

He can appeal the sentence.

Internacional – eluniversal.com. (Link in Spanish).

Technorati Tags: Iran, Masoud+Haldari, persecuted+journalist

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