Two journalists who reported on Mahsa Amini case could face death penalty in Iran

Nationwide protests errupted in September after death of 22-year-old in police custody

A photo of Mahsa Amini at a meeting to offer condolences at Delhi University. Reuters

Two journalists in Iran who reported on the death of Masha Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian who died in police custody, went on trial on Monday.

Niloufar Hamedi, 30, and Elaheh Mohammadi, 36, could face the death penalty, used against some anti-government protesters who are charged with “corruption on earth,” an accusation that can cover anything from infringing the country’s moral code to participating in street demonstrations.

Arrested in November, the two women were charged with propaganda against the state and conspiring against national security.

In some cases, it can carry the death penalty and at least seven protesters have been executed since unrest erupted across the country following Ms Amini’s death.

In February, Iran said it had detained nearly 20,000 people in the wake of protests that began on September 16, when Ms Amini died, allegedly after being beaten by police.

Her death caused national outrage and street demonstrations spread across the country, encompassing calls for improved rights for women and minorities, better job opportunities and, in some cases, the end of Iran’s theocratic rule.

The government was widely accused of a violent crackdown to end the protests, with accounts of the death toll varying among different rights groups, but reported by some sources to be more than 500.

The two journalists are being tried separately by the revolutionary courts behind closed doors in Tehran.

Ms Mohammadi's trial began on Monday and Hamedi's is scheduled to start the following day, according to judiciary spokesman Massoud Setayeshi.

Ms Mohammadi's lawyer, Shahab Mirlohi, described the session as "good and positive", telling AFP that the next court date would be confirmed later.

Ms Mohammadi, a journalist at reformist publication Ham Miham, was taken into custody on September 29 after she travelled to Ms Amini's hometown of Saqez in Kurdistan province to report on her funeral ceremony, which turned into a protest.

Ms Hamedi, who works at another reformist paper, Shargh, was detained on September 20 after reporting from the hospital where Ms Amini had spent three days in a coma before her death.

During last year's protests, which Tehran had labelled foreign-incited "riots", thousands were arrested and hundreds killed, including dozens of security personnel.