Four Iranian Journalists Missing Following Raid On Editorial Office

Four journalists from the Fardaye Eghtesad media outlet have been missing since February 5 amid tightening crackdowns on dissent under a weakening regime.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) revealed on Sunday that three video-journalists, Mehrdad Asgari, Nikan Khabazi, Ali Tasnimi and the deputy editor-in-chief of the liberal-leaning newspaper, Behzad Bahmannejad, were taken to an unknown location on Friday after being detained in the editorial office for four days.

Maryam Shokrani, an economic reporter, said the journalists have had no communication with their families, raising concerns about their whereabouts.

On Monday afternoon, approximately 30 journalists were arbitrarily detained at the offices by security forces without any explanation. Some managed to inform their families that their mobile phones and computers were confiscated during the detention.

Although some were released from the office on Tuesday morning, five others remained.

The judiciary claims the raid was unrelated to journalistic activities and that separate allegations were under investigation.

The International Federation of Journalists reported in July that following the killing of Mahsa Amini, at least 100 journalists in Iran have been detained, with more than 21 of them sentenced to a combined total of 77 years in prison.