Calling reformist newspapers 'bases of the enemy' before a mass closure, then blocking press-law reform
In April 2000 Khamenei said some newspapers had become bases of the enemy. Within days the judiciary closed more than a dozen reformist publications and jailed journalists. In August he sent parliament a letter that halted a bill to ease the press law, which had been used to close more than 20 papers.
Editorial timeline of public reporting, not a legal finding.
- Says 'some of the press have become the base of the enemy' - The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that Khamenei said in a speech that 'some of the press have become the base of the enemy' and that '10 to 15 newspapers' were being 'guided from one center'. Judicial authorities ban 14 newspapers, jail two journalists
- Fourteen publications banned and journalists Akbar Ganji and Latif Safari jailed - The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that days after the speech, judicial authorities banned 14 reformist newspapers and magazines and jailed journalists Akbar Ganji and Latif Safari. CPJ later reported that three more pro-reform papers were shut down. Judicial authorities ban 14 newspapers, jail two journalists
- Letter to parliament halts press-law reform as 'not legitimate' - BBC News reported that Speaker Mehdi Karroubi read out a letter from Khamenei and suspended debate on a bill to amend the press law, with the letter stating that 'the (proposed) bill is not legitimate'. Scuffles broke out in the chamber, and the existing law had by then been used to close more than 20 newspapers, the BBC reported. Khamenei blocks press reform
- CPJ: some 30 newspapers closed by the end of 2000 - In its annual review of 2000, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Khamenei's 20 April speech triggered 'a sweeping crackdown': two days later the judiciary banned 16 newspapers and magazines, and by the end of the year some 30 newspapers had been closed. Attacks on the Press 2000: Iran