Reporter Leaves Tehran After Eight Months

A Radio Free Europe correspondent was allowed to leave Iran Tuesday despite charges of conspiring against the government.

Parnaz Azima, a dual national of Iran and the United States, was en route to the United States after being detained Jan. 25 during a visit to her hospitalized mother in Tehran.

For eight long months, Parnaz’s colleagues at RFE/RL have been waiting for the day when she will be a free person again, said REF/RL President Jeff Gedmin. We are happy Parnaz can finally be reunited with her family and see her newborn grandchild for the first time.

Azima remains charged with acting against Iranian national security and spreading propaganda about the Iranian state through her work, Gedmin said.

Azima has rejected the charges, saying her stories weren’t about political activism.

Iranian-American scholar Haleh Esfandiari was allowed to leave Iran Sept. 3 after being detained for five months. Consultant Kian Tajbakhsh and peace activist Ali Shakeri, both Iranian-Americans held since May, remain in Iran.