Judiciary News Agency: No new charges have been filed against Nazanin Zaghari

Mizan News Agency, the official news agency of the judiciary, denied that new charges had been brought against Iranian-British citizen Nazanin Zaghari, but announced that she had been summoned to court but had not been "informed of the charges" because she did not have a lawyer.

The news agency reported on Monday, May 11, that Nazanin Zaghari was summoned to Branch 15 of Tehran's Revolutionary Court on Sunday.

According to the report, Ms. Zaghari stated in the court hearing that she needed a lawyer, and for this reason, she was "not informed of the charges" and a new time has been set for the court hearing.

According to the news agency, a representative of the prosecutor was also present at the meeting.

Ms. Zaghari has previously received a prison sentence, and therefore holding a new trial could mean new charges being brought against her.

Also, the presence of a prosecutor's representative in court hearings usually means that a new charge has been brought against the prisoner.

The Mizan News Agency report is a reaction to the statements of Nazanin Zaghari's husband, who announced that she has been faced with new charges.

Richard Ratcliffe announced in a statement released on Monday that the court hearing was held under the chairmanship of Judge Abolghasem Salavati and that his wife was charged with "propaganda against the regime."

Mr Ratcliffe said the judge told his wife that she should wait for another sentence to be issued against her.

However, Mizan News Agency wrote in its report that the "news story" about the judge's statement that Nazanin Zaghari is expected to be "convicted in the new case as well" is devoid of truth and credibility.

While Nazanin Zaghari's husband announced that she would be charged on Saturday, the Judiciary News Agency announced that Ms. Zaghari will appear in court on Sunday.

Ms. Zaghari, who worked for the Thomson Reuters charity, was arrested in April 2016 while leaving Iran and sentenced to five years in prison after being charged with crimes including "participating in activities related to soft subversion."

At the time, Nazanin Zaghari had traveled to Iran with her young daughter Gabriella to visit her family, and since her arrest, Gabriella, now three years old, has been living with Ms. Zaghari's parents in Tehran.

It is reported that Ms. Zaghari is requesting at least next month's leave to attend her daughter's fourth birthday party.

Last week, on the eve of a meeting between Mohammad Javad Zarif and his British counterpart Boris Johnson in Brussels, the Nazanin Zaghari Freedom Campaign announced that her legal case had been reopened.

Mr. Ratcliffe also announced that on Sunday, the British ambassador to Tehran was able to meet with Nazanin Zaghari, and this meeting was the first diplomatic access to Ms. Zaghari since her arrest.

During the two years since Ms. Zaghari's arrest and conviction in Iran, Britain has repeatedly called for her release, and during his visit to Tehran a few months ago, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called for Ms. Zaghari's release on humanitarian grounds.

Meanwhile, it has been reported for months that Britain is seeking to pave the way for his release by repaying nearly 400 million pounds in money related to a pre-revolutionary arms deal to Iran.

On the eve of the implementation of the JCPOA, in the winter of 2015, Iran similarly released several Iranian-American prisoners while simultaneously receiving an old debt from the United States, although these two events simultaneously fueled speculation that these prisoners were released in exchange for a ransom payment to Iran.

US President Donald Trump is among those who are critical of the previous US administration for this reason.

Source: Radio Farda