Iranian journalist Vahid Shamsoddinnezhad, arrested at the end of September in Iranian Kurdistan during a report for the Arte channel, returned to France on Monday, his country of residence, after two months of incarceration and more than three months of exit ban territory, announced Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
"
Vahid Shamsoddinnezhad arrived this Monday, March 6 in Paris, the day after the lifting of his ban on leaving Iranian territory
" and a month after having benefited from an amnesty measure, explains in a press release the organization for the defense of journalists.
Quoted in the press release, the Iranian journalist thanked “
all the people who mobilized
” for his release.
"
This ordeal, although painful, did not discourage me from being a journalist
," he added, saying he was "
on the contrary even more determined than ever to continue
" his profession.
Arrested six days after his arrival
Vahid Shamsoddinnezhad was commissioned at the end of September by the Franco-German channel Arte to cover the demonstrations in Iran.
“
Although he officially reported to the authorities upon his arrival on Iranian territory, he was arrested six days later in Saqqez (west), in Iranian Kurdistan, then transferred to Tehran, to Evin prison”
, details RSF.
"
After his arrest, Vahid Shamsoddinnezhad was charged with 'association and collusion with intent to commit a crime against the security of the country'"
, according to RSF, which had called for his release with Arte, the school of Journalism of Lille (ESJ), from which he graduated in September, and the national union of journalists (SNJ).
On 8 November, an Iranian government spokesman explained "
that the journalist had been arrested because he had not informed the authorities of his intention to visit Iranian Kurdistan
".
Since his release on bail at the end of November, the reporter had been banned from leaving the country pending trial.
He was granted amnesty on February 7.
Iran ranks 178th out of 180 countries in RSF's World Press Freedom Index in 2022.
