Diplomacy

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As Nuclear Talks Drag on, Iran Continues Closed Trial of American Journalist

by TheTower.org Staff |

As Iranian and Western officials continue to hammer out a nuclear accord in Vienna, Jason Rezaian, the Washington Post reporter imprisoned on espionage charges in Tehran, began his third hearing today, The New York Times reported.

Mr. Rezaian is one of at least three Americans in Iranian prisons, an issue repeatedly raised by American negotiators in nuclear talks with Iran, though there has been no indication that it would be part of any deal. …

The Rezaian case has come to typify what critics of Iran have called its arbitrary and opaque judicial system. Mr. Rezaian was arrested on July 22, 2014, and placed in solitary confinement for long periods. The judiciary did not disclose the nature of the charges against him for months, and it restricted his access to legal counsel. Leila Ahsan, his lawyer, has said that the evidence she has seen does not support the charges against him.

Rezaian’s case has served as a reminder of Iran’s history of human rights violations as Tehran and the P5+1 nations negotiate a nuclear accord. The injustice of Rezaian’s case belied claims by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif that Iran allows free speech. Rezaian’s family and those of three other Americans believed to be held by Iran came to Vienna to lobby the American government to negotiate their release.

After his arrest, Rezaian was held for nine months without charges being announced. Tehran later accused the reporter of “collaborating with hostile governments as well as writing a letter to President Obama.” The government restricted Rezaian’s access to legal counsel and prevented his family from attending the trial or speaking with him. The judge overseeing his case, Abolghassem Salavati, has been sanctioned by the European Union for his human rights record, particularly against journalists. He presided over the case for the three American hikers who were detained after they mistakenly entered Iran, only allowing them to be freed on $1.5 million bail.

Rezaian was not allowed to speak until two weeks into the trial.

[Photo: Associated Press / YouTube ]

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