Cartoon 45: Forced Confessions

Forced Confessions
Last Tuesday, February 19, the Iranian Intelligence Ministry hinted at an upcoming broadcast of confessions from imprisoned journalists when it issued a third statement regarding the recent roundup of journalists in Iran. In the statement, the ministry bolstered its accusations of espionage and relations with a “network” related to a “British Government Spy Organization.” “Several individuals identified in the network requested to re-tell and publish their information and experiences from this network in order to provide a warning for others,” the statement adds. The families of the detainees have repeatedly expressed concern that they may have been pressured to make forced confessions while in prison, emphasizing that the arrested journalists were not in contact with any foreign media. Most of the 16 journalists arrested in the past month, have been released over the past few days.