“Mr Rezaian has been condemned to a whole year in prison despite having committed no crime whatsoever. The Iranian authorities are acutely aware of this, having produced no evidence whatsoever to the contrary, and yet continue their deliberate policy of criminalising journalists and restricting freedom of the press,” said a statement from WAN-IFRA, the global organisation representing the world’s press.

“Iran should fully observe its international obligations to freedom of expression and release Jason Rezaian – along with all other journalists jailed simply for doing their jobs. They should do this as a matter of urgency.”

On 22 July, 2014, Mr Rezaian and his wife, Yeganeh Salehi, also a journalist, were arrested at their home in Tehran by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. Mr Rezaian was taken to Evin prison where he was held in solitary confinement, without any explanation as to the reason for his detention.

Yeganeh Salehi was released on bail in October, while Jason Rezaian remains behind bars.

In April 2015, the charges against Mr Rezaian – which had been filed in December 2014 but had remained secret - were finally publicised. The journalist, who holds dual US-Iranian nationality, was accused of espionage, collaborating with hostile governments, propaganda against the establishment and collecting classified information. The indictment against him reportedly alleged that he gathered information "about internal and foreign policy" and provided it to "individuals with hostile intent".

On 13 July 2015, the third hearing of Mr Rezaian’s case was held, without conclusion. No date has yet been set for the proceedings to resume. To-date, he has been detained longer than any other foreign journalist in Iran.

Sign the international petition demanding the release of Jason Rezaian and Tweet your support using the hashtag #FreeJason

For more information on WAN-IFRA’s press freedom work, visit http://www.wan-ifra.org/pressfreedom

WAN-IFRA, based in Paris, France, and Frankfurt, Germany, with subsidiaries in Singapore and India, is the global organisation of the world’s newspapers and news publishers. It represents more than 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries. Its core mission is to defend and promote press freedom, quality journalism and editorial integrity and the development of prosperous businesses.

Inquiries to: Andrew Heslop, Director, Press Freedom, WAN-IFRA, 96 bis, rue Beaubourg, 75003 Paris France. Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 29. Fax: +33 1 42 78 92 33. Email: andrew.heslop@wan-ifra.org