IRAN: ROXANA SABERI FREED

IRAN: ROXANA SABERI FREED

IFEX members welcomed the release of U.S. Iranian journalist Roxana Saberi,
whose eight-year jail term for spying for the U.S. was this week reduced to
a suspended two-year sentence and a five-year ban on reporting from Iran.

Her fiancé, filmmaker Bahman Ghobadi, her parents and her lawyers greeted
her as she emerged from Tehran's Evin prison on 11 May. Her father told
reporters she would be leaving the country in the coming days.

"This is excellent news," Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said. "The appeal
court's decision to free her can be used as a legal precedent for other
journalists currently detained in Iran."

In a closed-door session that lasted five hours, a Tehran court heard
Saberi's appeal against her original eight-year sentence on 10 May.
Although exact details about the charges against Saberi have still not been
made public, the BBC reported that the initial charge of "passing secret
information" had been reduced to "having access to classified information,"
allowing for the commuted sentence.

Saberi's case sparked international attention. IFEX members mounted
vigorous campaigns for her release. The Committee to Protect Journalists
(CPJ) circulated a petition calling for Saberi's release that garnered more
than 10,000 signatures, and along with 34 other IFEX members called on
Iran's judiciary to free her. U.S. President Barack Obama was among those
who appealed on her behalf.

Saberi has been held in Tehran's Evin prison since her arrest in January.
Living in Iran since 2003, the Fargo, North Dakota native had freelanced
for several news organisations, including NPR and the BBC.

IFEX members continue to call on the Iranian government to safeguard the
rights of other journalists currently in jail. According to RSF, six
journalists and cyber-dissidents were arrested on 1 May in Tehran during
May Day demonstrations.

Visit these links:
- RSF: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/103001
- Roxana Saberi released from prison (CPJ): http://tinyurl.com/pzwkq7
- Iran frees jailed journalist (Human Rights Watch):
http://www.hrw.org/en/node/83044
- American-Iranian journalist released (WiPC): http://tinyurl.com/pjbapm