Reza Moini, the chair of Iran and Afghanistan office at Reporters Without Borders expressed concerns about the new wave of summons and arrests of women reporters and citizen-journalists in Iran, calling Iran “the world’s biggest jailer of women journalists”.

According to Moini, “Iran is one of the world’s five largest prisons for journalists overall.”

The chair of Iran and Afghanistan office has called on UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran to “take immediate action for the release of these prisoners and the devastating conditions of freedom of the media in Iran.”

According to this organization’s report, in recent years 10 women reporters and citizen-journalists have been incarcerated in Iran.

Less than two months ago, over 500 reporters and media activists wrote a letter to President Rouhani and Ebrahim Raisi, the chief of the judiciary, asking for “the immediate release” of Marzieh Amiri and Masoud Kazemi, two arrested journalists.

Reporters Without Borders has ranked the Islamic Republic at 170 out of 180 countries in the 2019 freedom of the press report.

“Spreading lies, blasphemy, insulting the regime officials, and acts against national security” are the usual charges brought against journalists in Iran.

Reporters Without Borders had previously condemned efforts by Iran’s Judiciary and security organizations to influence Persian speaking media outside of Iran through pressuring family members of the reporters and employees of these media in Iran.

The organization also added that over 50 journalists outside Iran have been threatened by Iranian security agencies.

The Islamic Republic has also arrested several journalists with dual citizenships, accusing them of espionage.