Iran's increasing repression of civil society

Tehran, January 8, 2026. YALDA MOAIERY Since the start of the war against the United States and Israel on February 28, Iran's crackdown on civil society has intensified. On Sunday, August 9, in Tehran, Iranian photojournalist Yalda Moaiery announced she had been sentenced, at first instance, to 15 years in prison. The court also ordered the confiscation of her cameras and cell phone, barred her from all cultural and artistic activities and from holding public office and banned her from posting on social media. According to the verdict, the photographer, in her 40s, is guilty of "collaborating with foreign media with the aim of strengthening the Zionist regime and the US" in the context of the war. "I was not allowed to review my case file to know what evidence was being used against me," she told Le Monde . "But when the court officials flipped through it in front of me, it contained my photographs and my interviews with foreign media." You have 84.44% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.