Iran / Middle East & North Africa

  

Uncivil Wars

Iranian liberals counted on the new parliament to help free the reformist press.  Ayatollah Khamenei had other ideas.

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Two more journalists detained as press crackdown continues

Click here to read more about press freedom conditions in IRAN New York, August 14, 2000 — Iran’s conservative-controlled judiciary pushed ahead with its sweeping assault on the country’s reformist press, arresting two more journalists over the weekend, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

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Another Reformist Paper Closed After Khamenei Stifles Parliamentary Debate on Press Restrictions

New York, August 8, 2000 — Iran’s Press Court shut down yet another major reformist newspaper on Tuesday, two days after supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei quashed a parliamentary bill to amend the country’s restrictive press laws, according to wire service reports. “This latest move by Iran’s Press Court is extremely disheartening to those who…

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Judiciary suspends weekly newspaper; 21st pro-reform publication banned this year

Click here to read more about press freedom conditions in IRAN New York, July 25, 2000 — The reformist weekly Gunagoun was suspended by Branch 1410 of Tehran’s Public Court yesterday, bringing the total number of newspapers banned since January to 21. According to the state news agency IRNA, the closure came a day after…

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IPF Awards 2000 – Announcement

New York — The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) presented its International Press Freedom Awards for the year 2000 to four journalists–from Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malaysia, and Iran–for their courage and independence in reporting the news. These honorees endured jail, had their lives threatened and, in one case, survived a car-bomb attack,…

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Journalist sentenced for criticizing regime

Click here to read more about press freedom conditions in IRAN New York, July 17, 2000–A leading Iranian reporter detained since late May was sentenced today by Tehran’s Press Court to five and a half years in prison, Iran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported. Emadeddin Baghi’s incarceration is the result of a multitude…

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Iran: Supreme Leader quashes parliamentary debate on press-code reform

Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) wishes to protest your arbitrary and ill-advised decision to quash a proposed parliamentary bill to amend Iran’s harsh press laws.

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Liberal Opposition Journalist Arrested; Another Reformist Organ Shut Down

Click here to read more about press freedom conditions in IRAN New York, August 7, 2000 — A bill to reform Iran’s harsh press laws was quashed on Sunday by the country’s supreme religious leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The next day, a liberal opposition journalist was arrested, according to wire service reports.

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Judiciary bans another newspaper

New York, June 28, 2000 — A clerical court in Tehran has ordered the indefinite closure of one of the country’s last remaining pro-reform newspapers, bringing to 20 the number of papers closed by Iranian courts over the past two months. On Sunday, June 25, Iran’s Special Court for Clergy, a conservative tribunal that operates…

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Iran Briefing: May 2000

New York, May 5, 2000 —When Iran’s top cleric, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, launched a scathing tirade against the country’s pro-reform newspapers on April 20, journalists braced for the inevitable showdown. On previous occasions when the supreme leader had excoriated the press, the conservative-dominated judiciary responded with remarkable swiftness, shutting down newspapers and hauling journalists to…

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