A US permanent resident detained for a year in Iran over spying allegations has been sentenced to 10 years in prison and a $4.2 million fine, his supporters say. The punishment is the latest move in a crackdown on those with foreign ties following last year’s nuclear deal.
The sentence for Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese citizen who advocates for internet freedom and whose nonprofit group did work for the US government, comes as Iranian officials attend the United Nations General Assembly this week in New York.
A statement early Tuesday from Jason Poblete, a US lawyer representing Zakka, said a Revolutionary Court in Tehran handed down the sentence in a 60-page verdict that Zakka’s supporters have yet to see.
IJMA3 Secretary General Nizar Zakka speaks to Lebanon’s Future TV in July 2015. (Screen capture: Future Television Studios/Facebook)
Amnesty International has said Zakka had only two court hearings before the ruling and received only limited legal assistance. The closed-door tribunal handles cases involving alleged attempts to overthrow the government.
“There’s no regard for any international order, any international agreement or any international state of relations that they care about,” says David Ramadan, a former Virginia state legislator who co-founded a group called Friends of Nizar Zakka.
— AP
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