Iran Sentences US Reporter (and former Miss North Dakota) to 8 Years in Prison for Espionage

Initially arrested for buying wine in Iran, Roxana Saberi, a US reporter (and former Miss North Dakota) has been sentenced to 8 years in prison in Iran for espionage. The United States calls the charges “baseless.”

BREAKING NEWS Mon. 5. 11.09 (Click on the blue links below for more info):

According to CNN.com:  “Iran to Free U.S. Journalist, Father Says”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Additional report from the BBC: Iran “to release” Reporter Saberi

🙂

****

Iran Sentences US Reporter to 8 Years in Prison

VOANews

An American-Iranian journalist detained in Iran has been sentenced to eight years in prison on charges of spying for the United States.

A lawyer for journalist Roxana Saberi told news agencies about the court’s decision Saturday, and said he will appeal the verdict.

The 31-year-old dual American-Iranian citizen, who had been working in Iran for several news outlets, was arrested in late January for working in the country without valid press credentials.

But earlier this month, Iranian authorities announced espionage charges against her, saying Saberi used journalism as a cover to pass classified information to U.S. intelligence services.

The United States has rejected the espionage charges as “baseless.”  Source

****

Learn more about Roxana Saberi and her case here:

Profile: Roxana Saberi

BBC News

When the journalist Roxana Saberi was first arrested in Iran, her family was told it was for buying a bottle of wine – an act banned under the country’s Islamic law.

That was in January 2009. Iranian prosecutors then accused her of working as a journalist without a valid press card, before on 8 April she was finally accused of spying for the US.

Between January and March, Ms Saberi was only able to contact her family in the US twice, according to the human rights group Amnesty International.

She told them she was not being physically harmed but was finding life difficult in Evin prison, near Tehran.

Diverse heritage

Ms Saberi, 31, was born in the US and grew up in Fargo, North Dakota, the daughter of Reza Saberi, who was born in Iran, and his wife Akiko, who is from Japan.

In 1997 she was chosen as Miss North Dakota and was among the top 10 finalists in Miss America 1998.

When she received her Miss North Dakota title, Ms Saberi said that her aim was to encourage other people to appreciate cultural differences – an ambition that eventually led her into a career in journalism.

She graduated from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, with degrees in mass communication and French.

Ms Saberi also holds a master’s degree in broadcast journalism from Northwestern University in Chicago and another master’s degree in international relations from Cambridge University in the UK.

She is currently working on yet another masters degree in Iranian studies.

Ms Saberi moved to Iran six years ago and worked as a freelance journalist for various news organisations, including the BBC, before her press credentials were revoked.

Her father said she had been determined to go to Iran, although he had expressed his concerns.

Mr Saberi said that despite losing her press status, his daughter had stayed on to finish a book on Iran and to study. He said she had planned to return to the US later this year.

Shock arrest

But then came her arrest. More . . .

****

Subscribe to Brusque via RSS

What is RSS?

Subscribe to Brusque via Email

Follow Brusque on Twitter

****