The US government was wrong to arrest American-born Iranian journalist Marzieh Hashemi and detain her without charge, the press advocacy group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in a news release on Tuesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd January, 2019) The US government was wrong to arrest American-born Iranian journalist Marzieh Hashemi and detain her without charge, the press advocacy group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in a news release on Tuesday."Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the detention without charge in the United States of Marzieh Hashemi, a journalist with US and Iranian dual citizenship who is a news presenter for Press TV, an Iranian government-run English-language propaganda outlet," the release said.
Born in the United States as Melanie Franklin, Hashemi was arrested at St. Louis international airport on January 13 and is now being held at a detention center in Washington DC. Hashemi has lived in Iran since 1982, is married to an Iranian citizen and has worked for Press tv since 2008, RSF said.
"The US judicial authorities must announce the charges they plan to bring against this journalist. The opaqueness surrounding her detention is unacceptable. Marzieh Hashemi's fundamental rights must be guaranteed," RSF Iran desk head Reza Moini said in the release.
The FBI declined to answer RSF's questions about the reason for Hashemi's arrest, referring queries to the Department of Justice press office, RSF said. It is the first time that a journalist working for Iranian media has been detained in this manner by the United States, the group said.
