Iran pushes bill to criminalize journalists’ communication with ‘hostile media’

Iran's parliament approved a bill criminalizing interviews and communications with media deemed hostile, including US and Israeli outlets, with penalties of six months to two years in prison. The bill, pending Guardian Council review, also restricts contact with foreign entities and hardens penalties for economic crimes under foreign direction. The move follows a 2025 law and the sentencing of photojournalist Yalda Moaiery to 15 years in absentia.

Iran's parliament approved a bill on Sunday that would criminalize interviews and other communications with media deemed hostile to the Islamic Republic, including US or Israeli media and outlets financed by either country, according to Iran's Shargh newspaper. The bill, which must still be reviewed by the Guardian Council before becoming law, would ban such interviews and participation in discussions, with violations punishable by six months to two years in prison. Interviews with other foreign media would require notification to the intelligence ministry, while contact with foreign embassies, offices of foreign organizations, or other non-Iranian institutions without notification and written permission from the foreign ministry would be punishable by a fine and deprivation of certain social rights. The bill would also harden penalties for economic crimes committed under the direction or supervision of foreigners, ban providing information to foreigners without intelligence ministry approval, and restrict scientific cooperation with foreign institutions outside an approved list. It would punish policy or legislative proposals made under the direction of foreign intelligence services if they harm Iran's security or independence, with prison terms of up to 30 years, and cases would be heard by Revolutionary Courts. The move follows a 2025 law that imposed tougher penalties for alleged cooperation with hostile states after a 12-day war with Israel. Iranian award-winning photojournalist Yalda Moaiery has been sentenced in absentia to 15 years in prison by a Tehran court, according to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). Moaiery said she shared photographs showing damage from airstrikes in Iran with CNN and appeared in an interview about her reporting in March 2026. She has 10 days to appeal under the 2025 espionage law, half the time allowed under previous legislation. The crackdown on journalists comes amid a surge in executions of those accused of spying for Israel and the US or involvement in the mass anti-government protests that were brutally suppressed earlier this year. Iranian authorities executed at least 1,639 people last year, a record high since 1989, according to human rights groups, said to be the second most executions of any country, after China.