Iran convicts U.S Journalist of spying

[Wheezer]

Text

TEHRAN, Iran ? An Iranian court has convicted an American journalist of espionage and sentenced her to eight years in prison.

That's according to Roxana Saberi's lawyer, Abdolsamad Khorramshahi. He told The Associated Press on Saturday that he'll appeal the verdict.

It's unclear when Saberi was convicted. She was put on trial on Monday.

The American-Iranian citizen was arrested in January and initially accused of working without press credentials. But later, an Iranian judge charged her with spying for the United States.

The U.S. has called the charges baseless and demanded her release.

Saberi is from Fargo, N.D., and worked as a freelance reporter for news organizations including National Public Radio.

Hopefully this administration will step up and get this woman released.

 

[Woofmeister]

Bump to put this front and center. An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

Demand that Saberi be released!

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Hard to say because Iran put this trial behind closed doors. It's very suspicious though. If they had actual evidence against her then why the secret trial?

 

[Sacrilege]

Sound's like Guantanamo Style Justice! Iran has learned from the best.

Everyone who denounces this sentence, also denounces America's War on Terror; the legal proceedings are the same.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Hard to say because Iran put this trial behind closed doors. It's very suspicious though. If they had actual evidence against her then why the secret trial?

Hypothetically speaking, perhaps they didn't want the US gov't to know how they knew she was a spy.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: Sacrilege
Sound's like Guantanamo Style Justice! Iran has learned from the best.

Everyone who denounces this sentence, also denounces America's War on Terror; the legal proceedings are the same.

So what did she blow up in Iran? What battlefield was she captured on? Was she caught planting IEDs?

Yeah, it's just the same as Gitmo.

:roll:

 

[Woofmeister]

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Let's see, how about because the original charge was buying wine?

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Hard to say because Iran put this trial behind closed doors. It's very suspicious though. If they had actual evidence against her then why the secret trial?

Hypothetically speaking, perhaps they didn't want the US gov't to know how they knew she was a spy.

Maybe. Hypothetically speaking, it could be just as likely she was doing some sort of journalism on Iran or the Iranian people that didn't go down well with the mullahs, so they trumped up some charges.

 

[NoStateofMind]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: Sacrilege
Sound's like Guantanamo Style Justice! Iran has learned from the best.

Everyone who denounces this sentence, also denounces America's War on Terror; the legal proceedings are the same.

So what did she blow up in Iran? What battlefield was she captured on? Was she caught planting IEDs?

Yeah, it's just the same as Gitmo.

:roll:

:roll: back at ya. Regardless of how these "secret trials" started, they are wrong altogether, on both sides. Don't play BS semantics with this.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: Woofmeister

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Let's see, how about because the original charge was buying wine?

And how does that answer my question?

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Hard to say because Iran put this trial behind closed doors. It's very suspicious though. If they had actual evidence against her then why the secret trial?

Hypothetically speaking, perhaps they didn't want the US gov't to know how they knew she was a spy.

Maybe. Hypothetically speaking, it could be just as likely she was doing some sort of journalism on Iran or the Iranian people that didn't go down well with the mullahs, so they trumped up some charges.

Possibly so. But then I wonder what the motivations would be.

 

[Aimster]

U.S can't do anything. This woman is going to have 8 years of her life taken away.

I mean it's her fault in a way. No way in hell would I ever step foot in that country run by the lord of the rings cast. If I was to step into that country no way in hell would I be making any kind of documentary because who knows... if I use toilet paper in my documentary it might offend the lord of the rings cast because their wizard used a leaf instead.

What a sad story. Someone put on a ring and go rescue her.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: PC Surgeon

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: Sacrilege
Sound's like Guantanamo Style Justice! Iran has learned from the best.

Everyone who denounces this sentence, also denounces America's War on Terror; the legal proceedings are the same.

So what did she blow up in Iran? What battlefield was she captured on? Was she caught planting IEDs?

Yeah, it's just the same as Gitmo.

:roll:

:roll: back at ya. Regardless of how these "secret trials" started, they are wrong altogether, on both sides. Don't play BS semantics with this.

Semantics? Don't be ridiculous. If the reverse was stated the person making the statement would be pegged as an apologist making a deflection.

Nor am I denouncing the sentence. Maybe she was spying. If so she got nabbed and deserves her sentence. I would simply like to see some proof.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: bamacre

Originally posted by: Woofmeister
An American citizen and a journalist has been falsely convicted of espionage by Iran's kangaroo Revolutionary Court.

How do you know she was "falsely convicted?"

Hard to say because Iran put this trial behind closed doors. It's very suspicious though. If they had actual evidence against her then why the secret trial?

Hypothetically speaking, perhaps they didn't want the US gov't to know how they knew she was a spy.

Maybe. Hypothetically speaking, it could be just as likely she was doing some sort of journalism on Iran or the Iranian people that didn't go down well with the mullahs, so they trumped up some charges.

Possibly so. But then I wonder what the motivations would be.

The motivation is that the mullahs tend not to like having their private citizens make their opinions known publicly unless those opinions toe the party line, nor can they stand any criticisms of their government. Do some research on all the Iranian bloggers that have been jailed recently.

 

[jpeyton]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
I would simply like to see some proof.

It's a national security issue, and your security clearance isn't high enough. Sorry.

 

[Woofmeister]

Here's a report by Human Rights Watch from more than a year ago on Iran's clampdown on journalists. "You Can Detain Anyone for Anything".

Here's the HRW report on the original illegal detention of Saberi.

Here's the Petition from the Committee to Protect Journalists calling on Ahmadinejad to release Saberi.

Here's a statement by NPR, BBC, ABC, PBS, the Wall Street Journal, and Fox News on behalf of Saberi.

Edit Here's a link to the Urgent Action Memo from Amnesty International.

 

[jpeyton]

Next question, how many conservatives here support Iran if they used torture to extract her confession?

Wait, do you even consider water-boarding a form of torture?

:laugh:

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: jpeyton

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
I would simply like to see some proof.

It's a national security issue, and your security clearance isn't high enough. Sorry.

How do you know it's a national security issue? Did your buddy Iminajihadnutjob confide in you?

 

[fallout man]

I'm very sorry to hear about this woman's situation, and hope that her release can somehow be negotiated.

This thread, however, is bound to degenerate into the "told you so" discussion. Now that a US citizen is imprisoned on bizarre charges based on "secret" evidence by a closed court, we can take this moment to once again reflect on the logic and justice of the same exact thing happening to people in US custody.

 

[fallout man]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: jpeyton

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
I would simply like to see some proof.

It's a national security issue, and your security clearance isn't high enough. Sorry.

How do you know it's a national security issue? Did your buddy Iminajihadnutjob confide in you?

It could very well be a national security issue. Iran's Homeland Security, surely, can make it one and you can't do anything about it.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: fallout man

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: jpeyton

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
I would simply like to see some proof.

It's a national security issue, and your security clearance isn't high enough. Sorry.

How do you know it's a national security issue? Did your buddy Iminajihadnutjob confide in you?

It could very well be a national security issue. Iran's Homeland Security, surely, can make it one and you can't do anything about it.

I can complain about it. In fact, I very well may just whine incessantly about it like so many in here do about Gitmo. Seems like that would be fair turnabout.

 

[fallout man]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

I can complain about it. In fact, I very well may just whine incessantly about it like so many in here do about Gitmo. Seems like that would be fair turnabout.

You go ahead and do that. In fact, you should send Ahem-mah-dinnerjacket a strongly worded letter. You can set up a political activist group, and name it "Code Red White and Blue."

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: fallout man

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

I can complain about it. In fact, I very well may just whine incessantly about it like so many in here do about Gitmo. Seems like that would be fair turnabout.

You go ahead and do that. In fact, you should send Ahem-mah-dinnerjacket a strongly worded letter. You can set up a political activist group, and name it "Code Red White and Blue."

Yeah. You're right. No need to mimic those assholes on the left. I'll take the high road instead.

 

[ericlp]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken

Originally posted by: Sacrilege
Sound's like Guantanamo Style Justice! Iran has learned from the best.

Everyone who denounces this sentence, also denounces America's War on Terror; the legal proceedings are the same.

So what did she blow up in Iran? What battlefield was she captured on? Was she caught planting IEDs?

Yeah, it's just the same as Gitmo.

:roll:

An eye for an eye dude. Karma is a fucking bitch...

Play with matches and you eventually get burnt.

Yeah, and where was the trial for the people in gitmo? Oh yeah, I forgot we threw that shit out the window they were just fucking guilty. Seriously......

Personally? Who gives a shit what they do. Monkey see monkey do, It's not OUR right to demand that other countries follow our rules. Even if we did demand that they do, we just bend our own rules and tell em ... Do as We Say, Not as We Do. Bullshit, we can't even keep our own lies straight.

Yeah, I am angry here like everyone else, she's pretty good looking and probably doesn't deserve it since Iran is just setting an example for someone that probably didn't do anything ... "probably" being the key word... All I know maybe she was some sort of spy.

Oh well... A shame but... she took the risk and we all take risks in life. Sad now she has to pay for bushes mistakes...