Two Iranian lawmakers — one sitting and one former — have been handed suspended jail sentences and bans on media activity over separate cases involving public remarks deemed damaging to national security and public order, the judiciary’s official news outlet reported on Saturday.
The former lawmaker, Mostafa Kavakebian, was convicted after repeating allegations in two televised interviews accusing a French-born journalist of having intimate relations with senior Iranian officials.
“Following the remarks, the former member of parliament was summoned by the judiciary to present evidence and documentation, but after failing to provide any credible proof to support his statements, an indictment was issued by the prosecutor’s office and the case was referred to court for trial,” wrote Mizan News Agency.
The court sentenced him to 14 months in prison, suspended for four years, and imposed a two-year ban on all media activity, including interviews and publication of commentary across outlets or online platforms.
The editor-in-chief of the outlet that broadcast his comments was also fined under the court’s ruling, Mizan News Agency added. The verdicts are subject to appeal.
Kavakebian’s remarks concerned Catherine Perez-Shakdam, a French journalist of Jewish background who had previously visited Iran and written favorably about its leadership. In a July state TV interview, he said that she was an Israeli spy who had slept with 120 senior officials. Speaking to Iran International, Shakdam dismissed the charge as “not true, not possible, and completely absurd.”
Shakdam now works as a political analyst and spokesperson for an Israeli advocacy group We Believe In Israel.
Separate sentence for Tehran MP
In a separate ruling, a current member of parliament representing Tehran was convicted of “disturbing public opinion” after describing the government of President Masoud Pezeshkian as plotting to “end the Islamic Revolution” and “terminate Khamenei’s rule” during an online interview in June.
Abolfazl Zohrevand, who formerly served as Iran’s ambassador to Afghanistan, received a sentence of three months and one day in prison, suspended for three years, along with a two-year prohibition on media engagement. The editor responsible for publishing his comments was likewise ordered to pay a fine.
The court said it had first consulted the parliament’s oversight board, which confirmed the remarks fell outside Zohrevand’s duties as a lawmaker.
Each of the lawmakers remains free but under suspended sentences that would take effect if similar offenses are repeated within the designated period.
