information to disturb public opinion” for describing women in a martial arts training video as “assassins.”
Reuters issued an apology and correction to the video script in March but had its press credentials suspended. According to state news outlet PressTV, the Tehran Reuters bureau chief, Parisa Hafezi, was charged with “spreading lies and propaganda” by a special media court and had her passport revoked.
The judge was set to issue a final decision this week. The media court usually addresses domestic media issues, frequently issuing fines or jail sentences. Hafezi was trained as a metallurgical engineer at the Middle East Technical University in Turkey and had worked for Reuters since 2003.
The Reuters video shot in Tehran never said anything about the women being assassins. Some Reuters editor in London wrote the title that included the “assassins” reference.