A court hearing regarding the charges against two journalists, Mandana Sadeghi and Arash Qaleh Gholab, as well as a writer named Reza Mohammadi, was held on March 5, 2025, at the Revolutionary Court of Abadan. Additionally, the Public Prosecutor’s Office for Culture and Media filed a lawsuit against Yashar Soltani due to the publication of an investigative report.
The Revolutionary Court of Abadan has accused Mandana Sadeghi, Arash Qaleh Gholab, and Reza Mohammadi of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” “collusion and conspiracy to commit a crime against national security,” and “communication with hostile states.” According to the lawyer of the Abadan authors and journalists, this case has been opened with very serious charges against them, particularly related to news and analyses they published about the Metropol building collapse and the “Women, Life, Freedom” protests in 2022.
Arash Qaleh Gholab was arrested in June 2022 for informing about protests surrounding the collapse of the Metropol building in Abadan and was released 10 days later on bail.
On October 19, 2022, Mandana Sadeghi and Reza Mohammadi were also arrested in connection with widespread protests and following their reporting on the extensive suppression of protesting citizens by security and law enforcement agencies. The arrest of Mandana Sadeghi and her husband occurred just after she reported on the “forced confessions” of several women from Abadan who had been detained during the protests.
Mandana Sadeghi spent over 50 days in detention in this case, during which she had no access to her family, was deprived of a lawyer, and interrogators prevented her from obtaining necessary medications and medical services.
On Tuesday, March 3, 2025, the Tehran Public Prosecutor’s Office for Culture and Media filed a legal case against Yashar Soltani just one day after he published a report titled “The Disappearance of 61 Tons of Gold from the Central Bank of Iran in One Year.”
Yashar Soltani is a journalist and editor-in-chief of the Eskan News analytical news site. He has repeatedly faced judicial and security pressures for publishing critical reports and exposing corruption among officials and governmental institutions in Iran. Last year, Yashar Soltani spent four months in Great Tehran Prison.