The Iranian regime has intensified a campaign of intimidation against exiled journalists, increasingly leveraging threats against their relatives still living in Iran.
One case involves Roozbeh Bolhari, a U.S.-based former Voice of America Persian service journalist. Last month, a relative of his was called into an intelligence office in Tehran and given a stark warning. The officer ordered the relative to tell Bolhari to leave what was described as “hostile media,” threatening to issue a verdict and send an arrest warrant to Interpol if he did not comply.
Bolhari acknowledged expecting some retaliation for his work but remained defiant even after learning that authorities considered luring him back with a false promise of clemency. The underlying message was unmistakable: stop reporting or your family will pay the price.
This pattern extends well beyond Bolhari. Numerous Iranian journalists living abroad report facing a new wave of harassment that targets not only themselves but also their families inside the country. Human rights advocates characterize it as a cross-border effort to silence dissenting voices.
The BBC recently went public with accusations that Iran has escalated its longstanding harassment of journalists working for its Persian service. Rozita Lotfi, head of BBC Persian, stated that families of staff in Iran have faced arbitrary interrogations, travel bans, passport confiscations, and threats of asset seizures. According to Lotfi, family members returning from trips abroad have been detained, questioned, and used as couriers to deliver threats demanding journalists leave their jobs and come back to Iran.
Lotfi noted that the pressure has spiked dramatically since the 2022 protests following Mahsa Amini’s death in police custody. After BBC Persian covered those events, Iran formally sanctioned the outlet, alleging it backed terrorism.
Mai Sato, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Iran, warned that these threats create a “chilling effect” on exiled journalists. Targets may alter their work within their organizations or, in the worst cases, leave journalism altogether. Self-censorship is also a consequence.
Roya Boroumand, executive director of the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights, said the impact goes beyond stopping individual stories. By drawing invisible red lines abroad, the Iranian government has hindered information flow, discouraging and demobilizing many professionals.
The U.S. has also acted, recently sanctioning six senior employees of Iran’s state media for broadcasting hundreds of programs.
While the Iranian government has not responded to the latest allegations, the United Kingdom confirmed it has raised the issue with Tehran. An Interpol spokesperson said the organization has robust procedures to ensure its systems are not misused, adding that “journalism is not a crime.”