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19 April 2009 TEHRAN: An American journalist
jailed in Iran has been convicted of spying and
sentenced to eight years in prison just days after she
was tried behind closed doors, her lawyer said
yesterday, dashing any hopes for her quick release.
Roxana Saberi’s Iranian-born father said his
daughter was tricked into making incriminating
statements by officials who told her they would free
her if she did.
US President Barack Obama is “deeply disappointed”
by the sentencing, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs
said. Gibbs, who was speaking in Port of Spain where
Obama is attending a Summit of the Americas, declined
to answer a question on how the case might affect US
relations with Iran, saying only, “What we think is
important is that the situation be remedied.”
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said
the US is working with Swiss diplomats in Iran to get
details about the court’s decision and to ensure
Saberi’s well-being. She said the US will “vigorously
raise our concerns” with the Iranian government.
Saberi, a 31-year-old dual American-Iranian
citizen, was arrested in late January and initially
accused of working without press credentials.
But earlier this month, an Iranian judge leveled a
far more serious allegation, charging her with spying
for the United States.
She appeared before an Iranian court behind closed
doors on Monday in an unusually swift one-day trial.
Her lawyer was permitted to attend, but had declined
to discuss any details.
The Fargo, North Dakota native had been living in
Iran for six years and had worked as a freelance
reporter for several news organizations including
National Public Radio and the British Broadcasting
Corporation.
“Saberi has been sentenced to eight years in jail.
I’ll definitely appeal the verdict,” lawyer Abdolsamad
Khorramshahi said.
Reza Saberi told NPR his daughter denied the
incriminating statements she made when she realized
she had been tricked but “apparently in the case they
didn’t consider her denial.”
He said his daughter was convicted Wednesday, but
the court waited until yesterday to announce the
verdict to the lawyers. Reza Saberi is in Iran but was
not allowed into the courtroom to see his daughter,
who he described as “quite depressed.”
North Dakota Sen. Byron Dorgan called on the
Iranian government to “show compassion” and release
Saberi. “This is a shocking miscarriage of justice,”
the Democrat said in a statement.
The United States has called the charges against
Saberi baseless and has demanded her release, and the
conviction and prison sentence could put strains on
efforts to improve ties. |
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