An Iranian court has sentenced journalists Nilufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi to prison for their roles in covering the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody, Iranian judicial media outlet Mizan Online reported.
According to Mizan Online, Elahe Mohammadi was sentenced to six years in prison for collaborating with the US, five years for conspiracy against the country’s security and one year for propaganda against the Islamic Republic.
Photojournalist Nilufar Hamedi was sentenced to seven years in prison for collaborating with the United States, five years in prison for conspiracy against the country’s security and one year in prison for propaganda against the Islamic Republic, the same source added, citing Efe news agencies. AFP.
In September, Elnaz Mohammadi of the Hamamikhan daily and Negin Bagheri of the Haft-e Sobh newspaper were also convicted and will have to serve just under a month in custody, said lawyer Amir Raisyan.
“The rest of the sentence will be suspended for five years,” he added, as quoted by the French news agency AFP.
During this period, both journalists will be required to take “professional ethics” courses and will not be able to leave Iran.
Elnaz Mohammadi, Elahe Mohammadi’s sister, was detained for a week in February for an unspecified reason.
The death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after being detained by morality police on charges of violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code has sparked demonstrations across Iran.
Hundreds of people have died in the demonstrations, including dozens of security forces.
Thousands of protesters were also detained, accused by authorities of participating in unrest provoked by Israel, a declared enemy of Iran, and Western countries.
Local media recently reported that more than 90 journalists were detained or questioned following the demonstrations.