Three family members of an Iran International TV presenter were detained in Tehran by the Revolutionary Guards forces seeking to force her resignation as the channel continues its uncensored coverage of the Iran-Israel conflict amid an official internet blackout.
The presenter's mother, father and younger brother are being held in an unidentified location.
The presenter received a phone call from her father early Saturday morning urging her to resign. The voices of security agents could be heard in the background telling her father what to say.
“I’ve told you a thousand times to resign. What other consequences do you expect?” he told her. "You have to resign”.
"Iran International strongly condemns the Islamic Republic's recent abduction of family members of one of our journalists, an appalling act of hostage-taking aimed at coercing our colleague into resigning from their post," a spokesperson for Iran International said.
"This deeply reprehensible tactic marks a dangerous escalation in the Islamic Republic's ruthless campaign to silence dissent and suppress independent journalism."
Exerting pressure on the families of Iran International staff is not new. Many have faced ongoing harassment, surveillance, and intimidation over the years. However, this latest development crosses a new threshold.
The deliberate detention of a relative, coupled with the use of psychological torture, represents a cruel and calculated effort to break the will of our journalists by targeting their loved ones.
This tactic is a violation of international human rights law. It is also an alarming indicator of the lengths the Islamic Republic will go to silence independent reporting and suppress truth.
Iran International is increasingly concerned that the Iranian government is entering a new phase of unchecked repression, in which individuals linked to independent media outlets or international organizations risk being taken hostage and subjected to cruel treatment.
Iran International calls upon the UN and its member states, international human rights bodies and media watchdogs to condemn this act of state-sponsored intimidation and to exert maximum pressure on the Iranian authorities for the immediate and unconditional release of the family of Iran International’s presenter.
Iran International remains undeterred by attempts to silence it and remains committed to its mission of providing independent and accurate news to the Iranian people.
Iran International is an independent television news channel broadcasting to Iran, offering unbiased and uncensored news and analysis to a wide audience. It is the most-watched news channel in Iran.
Based in London, it aims to provide a platform for diverse voices and foster informed public discourse on events concerning Iran and the wider region. Iran International is managed by Volant Media UK Limited.
