城之源

一 |     Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- A court in Iran sentenced two female journalists to up to seven years in prison for “collaborating” with the United States government among other charges, local reports said. Both have been imprisoned for over a year following their coverage of the death of Mahsa Amini while in police custody in Sept. 2022.This is a preliminary sentencing that can be appealed in 20 days. The two journalists, Niloufar Hamedi, who broke the news of Amini’s death for wearing her headscarf too loosely, and Elaheh Mohammadi, who wrote about her funeral, were sentenced to seven and six years in jail respectively, reported the judiciary news website, Mizan on Sunday. Tehran Revolutionary Court charged them with “collaborating with the hostile American government,” “colluding against national security” and “propaganda against the system,” according to Mezan.Hamedi worked for the reformist newspaper Shargh while Mohammadi for Ham-Mihan. They were detained in September 2022.In May, the United Nations awarded them both its premier prize for press freedom “for their commitment to truth and accountability.”Amini’s death touched off months-long protests in dozens of cities across Iran. The demonstrations posed one of the most serious challenges to the Islamic Republic since the 2009 Green Movement protests drew millions to the streets.While nearly 100 journalists were arrested amid the demonstrations, Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi’s reporting was crucial in the days after Amini’s death to spread the word about the anger that followed. Their detentions have sparked international criticism over the bloody security force crackdown that lasted months after Amini’s death.Since the protests began, at least 529 people have been killed in demonstrations, according to Human Rights activists in Iran. Over 19,700 others have been detained by authorities amid a violent crackdown trying to suppress the dissent. Iran for months has not offered any overall casualty figures, while acknowledging tens of thousands had been detained.。    "There cannot be shortcuts or fast tracks to the membership itself. The EU covers so many areas, and at the very heart of the EU is the single market. And the single market cannot function if, in one part of it, not all rules, regulations, standards are being followed. So, a very thorough work needs to be done by the Ukrainians," Maasikas told Euronews.,The ambassador also denied that the massive accession questionnaire, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky handed over to Maasikas after submitting Ukraine's membership application, was mostly filled out by EU officials rather than the Ukrainian government itself.,Zelensky Touts Ukraine's EU Candidate Status as 'Biggest Step Toward Stronger Europe'23 June, 23:02 GMT,Zelensky signed the application for Ukraine's accession to the EU on February 28, a few days after the start of the Russian special operation. During the EU delegation's visit to Kiev on April 8, Zelensky received a questionnaire to begin Ukraine's accession process and returned it to Maasikas on April 18.,On June 23, the EU approved granting Ukraine the status of a candidate for joining the bloc. Gaining the candidate status is the first step in a long process of accession. Turkey has been a candidate since 1999, North Macedonia since 2005, Montenegro since 2010, and Serbia since 2012. Croatia was the latest country to join the EU in 2013 after a ten-year accession process.。