Number of journalists held in unknown location in current crackdown rises to nine

Reporters Without Borders today condemned the arrest of another journalist in Iran, Ali Akrami, which brought to at least nine the number of journalists arbitrarily detained in the past few weeks in a crackdown prompted by student demonstrations. It is not known where they are being held and their lawyers and relatives have been unable to get any word of them. The organisation cautioned the authorities about a campaign orchestrated by judicial officials and revolutionary guards in the mosques and conservative press in which all the detained students and journalists are accused of being "mohareb" (persons who fight against God), which is punishable by death. Reporters Without Borders also reiterated its call for the release of all the journalists imprisoned in Iran, which now totals at least 17. The recent arrests have made Iran the biggest prison for journalists in the Middle East. Akrami worked for the reformist daily Nedat Eslahat, which has been closed by the authorities for some time. His wife said she has not seen him since 16 June, when he went missing while outside Tehran university, and she said she was worried about his fate. State prosecutor Saïd Mortazavi has said the recently detained journalists were being held in Evin prisons. But lawyers of the journalists who have gone to the prison have not been able to locate their clients and found no mention of their names in the prison records. Mohsen Sazgara, the editor of the website Alliran and the (closed) reformist daily Jameh, is meanwhile continuing the hunger strike he began on the day of his arrest on 15 June. He is now very weak, and his condition is all the more worrying because he has a heart ailment. His wife, who is also on hunger strike to protest against his imprisonment, was summoned by judicial officials on 25 June and was hospitalised the same day.