Acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof faces eight years behind bars and flogging after a court convicted him of national security crimes, his lawyer stated on Wednesday.
Lawyer Babak Paknia revealed the sentence on social media platform X, claiming the court deemed Rasoulof’s films and documentaries “collusion with the intention of committing a crime against the security of the country.”
This verdict comes alongside an unspecified fine and confiscation of Rasoulof’s property.
Rasoulof is a celebrated director, having won the Golden Bear at the 2020 Berlinale Film Festival for “There Is No Evil.”
He also received recognition at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival with “A Man of Integrity.”
His most recent work, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” is scheduled to premiere at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival in France.
However, the lead-up to the film’s release has been marred by pressure from the Iranian government, according to Rasoulof’s lawyer.
Paknia, writing on X last week, claimed actors faced interrogation and travel bans from Iranian officials.
Some were allegedly pressured to convince Rasoulof to withdraw the film from Cannes.
This isn’t Rasoulof’s first run-in with Iranian authorities. In 2022, he received a one-year prison sentence and a two-year filmmaking ban on charges of “propaganda against the system,” according to Human Rights Watch.
HRW further stated that Iranian authorities have repeatedly arrested Rasoulof and confiscated his passport due to his work.
Iran’s Independent Filmmaker Association condemned the recent sentencing.
In a statement, they criticized the judiciary, calling it “a playground for stubbornness and revenge” influenced by government control.
They expressed solidarity with Rasoulof and other artists challenging government censorship.
Source-CNN
