Jailed Iranian Journalists Who Reported On Mahsa Amini's Death Wins UN Press Freedom Awards

Three jailed Iranian female journalists, who reported the story of a 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, have won the prestigious United Nations’ top award for press freedom.

On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day on May 3, three Iranian female journalists – Niloufar Hamedi, Elaheh Mohammadi, and Narges Mohammadi – won the UN press freedom award “for their commitment to truth and accountability.”

Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American journalist, author, and women's rights activist, said, “Leaders in Iran are the biggest oppressors of media freedom in the world.” She further told the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that being a journalist in the Islamic Republic of Iran is considered a crime and causes people to be jailed.

On Tuesday evening, Audrey Azoulay, Director General of UNESCO, announced the names of the winners of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Press Freedom Prize. Azoulay said, “Now more than ever, it is important to pay tribute to all women journalists who are prevented from doing their jobs.”

Niloufar Hamedi reported on the story of a 22-year-old Iranian-Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who died in the custody of the country’s morality police. Amini was allegedly arrested for wearing a loose hijab. Human rights activists claimed that morality police hit Amini’s head for wearing a loose headscarf. Niloufar Hamedi was arrested by the Iranian authorities for breaking the news story about Mahsa Amini.

Elaheh Mohammadi reported about Mahsa Amini's funeral in the northern Iranian city of Saqqez. Huge protests erupted in Saqqez over the untimely death of Mahsa Amini. Narges Mohammadi worked as a journalist in Iran for many years. She is the vice president of the Defenders of Human Rights Centre, an Iranian human rights organisation, which is headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi.

Zainab Salbi, an Iraqi American women's rights activist, said that the three winners did a great job of reporting stories on women’s issues.

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