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Iran Extends Detention Of 'Washington Post' Reporter


Iranian-American correspondent Jason Rezaian and his Iranian wife, Yeganeh Salehi, pose while covering a press conference at Iran's Foreign Ministry in Tehran in September 2013.
Iranian-American correspondent Jason Rezaian and his Iranian wife, Yeganeh Salehi, pose while covering a press conference at Iran's Foreign Ministry in Tehran in September 2013.

Iran’s judiciary has extended the pretrial detention of "Washington Post" reporter Jason Rezaian for another two months, a rights watchdog has reported.

Rezaian, who holds dual American and Iranian citizenship, has been in detention for the past four months without being formally charged.

The reason for his arrest is unclear.

Human Rights Watch said on December 3 that the authorities had informed Rezaian, who is being held at Tehran's notorious Evin prison, that investigations against him were ongoing and that his detention had been extended.

Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said the Iranian authorities should release Rezaian.

She said that "If the authorities had evidence that Rezaian had committed a real crime, they should have charged him shortly after his arrest."

Rezaian and his wife, Yeganeh Salehi, also a reporter, were reportedly detained on July 22.

Salehi has been since released on bail.

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