Roxana Saberi's case: How should the U.S. respond?

[newsfarsi]

14 سال مجرد در کانادا و ار زن ها رفتن تو کاباره ها و مشروب خوردن و معشوق عوض کردن و کثافت بازی و باید تلاش کنیم تا ایران مثل ایجا به گوه کشیده نشود مردم اینجا ننه شرم می دانند نه خانواده و نه اعتقاد و نه شرف و..مثل یک حیوان

[PloughTheSky]

I always find it funny to see how the Western media typically makes big stories about every human right abuse committed by Iran and but barely mentions it when the US or one of its vassals do the same. The victims of pro-American governments are usually not considered worthy talking about, lol.

[PloughTheSky]

- By apologizing for having murdered Iraqi journalists, bombed Aljazeera's offices in Kabul and Baghdad and threatened to bomb its headquarters in Qatar, just because Aljazeera was not willing to broadcast only American propaganda like the US media.

- By thinking about not repeating this stuff during future invasions. And by stopping to invading countries in general.

[PloughTheSky]

How should the US respond? I have some ideas:

- By stopping to send spies into Iran and then claim they are just poor journalists unjustly arrested by the evil Iranians when they get caught

- By liberating all the Iraqi and Afghan journalists that are held in American jails since several years just because they tried to report on US war crimes (needless to mention that these are being detained without any charge or trial, plus some of them have been tortured)

[haierdell]

Since when did the US start caring about Muslims. They've killed about a million in Iraq. She is just a pawn being used to advance an agenda of hate against islam and iran. Oil. Oil. Oil.

[phudimaar]

Yes every body is right at their thinks... but why that bloody bitch go there and spy for American why? I think they are treating her good and according to her staus...as spy..,. what the american do with their spy they kiss them or treat them in Goonta namoo....mind your own busines.

[ZedYahood2]

gxnxsis I have a few friends who have been in the British and American and Israeli prisons for 20 years without trail!

[ZedYahood2]

gxnxsis over 10,000 Palestinians and Lebanese have been in Israeli Jails for years without even being tried. How can you call that a respect for basic human rights? You Jews make me laugh!

[ZedYahood2]

The Human rights say that people should be allowed to live anywhere they want to live; right? So why the USA is not letting the South Americans to come to the USA and live where they want to live?

Isn't it against the Human Rights to stop these people from living where they want to live?

[ZedYahood2]

gxnxsis actually it odes; it is covered by the freedom of movement. You should be able to go anywhere you wish.

[roadrage638]

we in the us should mind our own buisness, this cunt broke their laws. I say, "OFF WITH HER HEAD"....!

[Adalgesa]

With Obama as president this is as good as gone. That coward won't do anything to rescue her. perhaps in 2012 when we elect someone wth some balls that doesn't run around kissing middle-eastern arse. Send in the brothers and they will bring her home and level Evin prison just for good measure

[locnessjesus]

bitch ass chink lasted like one day on her hunger strike

temple of the dog

[robbisoccer]

This is huge....I say lets boycott Iran.....and create an international food embargo of the country until Saberi is freed..

[mashaallah58]

Iran is bitter enemy of mankind as whole,

judges are the bastard children of Arabs during Muhammad time,

the world must come together to put them all in trial

[Qourosh]

ta molla kafan nashe,

in watan watan nashe....

[TheMadKingII]

I say they pull any more games like a rigged trial again, we cut off their gasoline. If that don't work, warm up the B-52s. It's the only diplomacy they understand, really.

Sometimes a Thugocracy is just a Thugocracy. Tried building bridges with Hitler. Doesn't work with fascist dictatorships. Blowing a few bridges up might, though :)

[iraqieagle]

this bitch is spy,she desrve death penalty

[Mifodiy35]

How can you expect fair trial (by western standards) ,from nation that lives by sharia low ?

Its two big differences ,as they say in Odessa .

[dbrydges]

If you get rid of coerced confessions you'd have to empty out the prisons. Almost all confessions are coerced in some manner or another, police lie and tell the accused they can only help them if they confess etc... It's a tried and true practice both here in Canada and in the USA.

The USA would have to do far more than prosecute Bush officials to regain moral authority where Iran is concerned. I suggest you google Mohammad Mossadegh for a bit of a history lesson.

[dbrydges]

Al-Jazeera cameraman Sami al-Hajj was held in Gitmo for 6 years without trial or charge and the Americans want to cry about this?

Should Iran water board Roxana too just to make sure show does have any more information? Water boarding isn't torture after all.

It seems like America can dish it out but can't take it. Sadly the moral high-ground has eroded away and the whinging now rings hollow.

[damsel2007]

Torture and coerced confessions are wrong regardless of what country is doing it. Iran, USA, China, and many others have tortured or continue to torture people.

If Obama goes after Bush officals and hold them accountable for their crimes, then we can begin to correct the abuses committed by the previous administration.

Sounds like you're okay w/ Iran going after this girl. She's American. So who cares right?

Canada and others have no moral high ground since they participated in rendition.

[amooballer]

correction - she has dual citizenship. get your facts straight. if you are a dual citizen you are subject to the laws of both countries. when in Iran she is considered an iranian and all the laws apply.

[ZedYahood2]

amooballer she entered Iran with her Iranian passport therefore she gave up all the US citizen protection she would have if she had used her American passport.

Why did she claim to be an Iranian with American passport when she knew that duel nationality is illegal in Iran? Isn't this alone a proof that she is a spy?

[gxnxsis]

no, dual-nationality is not illegal in Iran! Iranian government does not accept it,, but its not illegal! and no, this is not a proof that she is a spy.

[ZedYahood2]

gxnxsis you cannot have two nationalities in most countries; if Iranians take another nationality they lose their Iranian nationality automatically.

Only a few countries accept duel nationalities and some countries do not give nationality to the foreigners under any circumstances.

[ZedYahood2]

gxnxsis Something that is not accepted by law is illegal. Check it with a lawyer. Under the Iranian law the only people who can have double nationality are the foreigners who marry the Iranians because if they divorce they lose their Iranian nationality automatically. If an Iranian takes a second nationality he has automatically given up his Iranian nationality. This is the law; it may not be enforced rigorously currently but it is the law.

[dbrydges]

This woman confessed. She was told she would get off lightly if she confessed and she confessed.

Was it a lie that she would get off lightly? Probably but western police interrogators use the same tactics all of the time. At least she had a trial where presumably evidence is presented, including her confession, which is more than can be said for foreign nationals held for years in secret locations by the US without trial or charge.

[jmmckeever]

free the 3 Iranian diplomats abducted from Iranian Consulate in Abril by US military in Iraq in 2007.

[ZedYahood2]

She was not a journalist; she did not have a licence to work as a foreign journalist so I think she is a spy.

[damsel2007]

She is a journalist having worked with NPR, BBC, and other news agencies. The Iranians first charged her for buying a bottle of wine. Then they changed it to not having a valid press pass. Then finally the Iranians charged her with being a spy. This is so absurd. Iran is using this girl for political reasons. Election time there is coming up. Iran is another screwed up country run by religious nuts (clerics).

[ZedYahood2]

@damsel2007;

If you dont have permission to work in a country as a journalist you are not a journalist in that country. The Iranian would not have charged her with espionage immediately because that would warn other spies in her team to go underground. So they charged her with another thing and tried to find out the identity of the other members of the ring during the interrogation.

[ZedYahood2]

She took pictures of sensitive buildings and installations despite big signs of No Photography. She has taken picture of people going in and coming out and sent them to the UK and USA. UK and USA could use those photos to identify the people and assassin them. Two Iranian scientists have been assassinated in the last couple of years and Israel has said it was their job.

[damsel2007]

ZedYahood2:

I have news for you. The US has sophisticated satellites and technology. The US likely has all the photos to key buildings and installations in Iran a long time ago. The US has photos of important installations all over the planet. That should not be a big surprise to anyone.

The CIA would not use a girl who was a former beauty pageant queen and has her face everywhere (TV and Internet). Low profile is important in espionage.

[damsel2007]

Unfortunately, Iran has a history of arresting teachers, journalists, and innocent people and labeling them as spies for political reasons and not for national security.

Since Roxana is of Iranian and Japanese descent who was born and raised in the US, it is highly unlikely she spied for Israel or the UK. The girl moved to Iran because she wanted to know more about her culture.

The "string pullers" have created a mess all over this planet. The girl is being used in a game btwn the US and Iran.

[ZedYahood2]

1- Actually there are limitations on what you can see in a satellite photo. You can see the building but you don't know what is in it; e.g. USA did not know about the Natanz which is a big installation until the spies reported it.

Satellites also cannot take picture of your face unless you walk face up to sky all the time!

As for who could be a spy, actually those who you suspect less have a better chance of being successful spies. It doesn't matter if they are famous or not.

[ZedYahood2]

2- With regard to those people that you claimed have been wrongly labelled as spies; how do you know that they were not spies? Do you know them personally? Would they tell you that they were spies if you knew them? I cannot understand how you can make such claims? If I find someone suspicious I will report them, we are at war with the west and they play all kind of dirty tricks.

[ZedYahood2]

3- You also said that she could not be spying for UK or Israel.

How do you know that? We know that she worked for BBC and we know that BBC's foreign department is financed and ran by the UK foreign Office and we also know that the UK foreign minister is a Jew and a friend of Israel, and considering these facts there is a good chance that she could be spying for Israel thru BBC.

[ZedYahood2]

4- You said she moved to Iran to learn more about the culture; she was in Iran for 6 years, how many years did she spent in Japan to find out about her mothers country? I am sure we all agree that Japan is a more fascinating country than Iran for a young women who drinks and likes to do other things that are banned in Iran.

[ZedYahood2]

5- The more I think about it the more I am convinced that she is a spy but the fact that she has been given only 8 years shows that she has not been a big spy. A few months ago a man was killed for working for Israel and committing espionage and sabotage in Iran.

[damsel2007]

The more I think about it the more I think your government is just using this girl as a pawn in its dealings with the US. Just because your government says she is a spy does not mean she is. Where is the proof? Where was the transparency in her trial?

Iran has a habit of arresting students, womens rights activists, and foreigners who are visiting their families. Dangerous people!

If Roxana is released close to the time of your June elections, you can bet this was all a twisted game.

[ZedYahood2]

1- Obviously you have a distorted image of Iran which is planted in you by your media (I read and watch your media and I know them very well).

USA has been working on a soft coup or velvet revolution in Iran for years and 10s of NGOs have been set up and funded by CIA. Women rights activists are actually one of the biggest CIA funded NGOs. USA does not care about human rights or women rights in Iran, their main goal is to create problems in Iran and derail the revolution.

[ZedYahood2]

2- We are both educated people and know about these kinds of plots and tricks, we live in the 21st century!

I also suggest you read dbrydges's comments on this issue.

PS: As the case was judged in a day or two that means that Roxanan has been confronted with such undeniable evidence that she could not deny.

If you read Roxana's father's latest interview you will see that he is asking for compassion. Why does he ask for compassion if Roxana is not guilty?

Use your head.

[damsel2007]

She has the right to learn about her heritage. I for one would prefer Japan to any repressive or conservative country but I am not her and neither are you. For some reason, she found her Iranian side more interesting and was writing a book.

[johnwaynetheduke]

America needs to demonstrate its testicular fortitude and show these towel-head mullahs that taking American hostage can be very costly.

Had that incompetent peanut farmer Jimmy Carter bombed Khomaini 30 years ago for taking 52 American hostages, this Ahmadinejad would not have dared to take another American as hostage!?

I say let's give the mullahs 24 hours to release the US reporter, else bomb the fvck out of Islamic Republic and its rag head supporters.

[behsaba]

im so glad that bullshit asshat views like yours went with that bullshit asshat president in january

[oilhammer04]

"Tried fairly". . . . do we really expect fair trials in that part of the world?