US Holds Iranian Journalist In Custody As 'Material Witness' - Reports

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2019) US authorities are holding an Iranian journalist who came to the country to visit her family as a 'material witness' in an unspecified case in a Federal court in Washington, DC, US media reported.

American-born reporter Marzieh Hashemi, who has worked for Tehran-based Press tv for 25 years, was arrested by the FBI at the St.

Louis airport before her flight to Denver, The Washington Post reported on Friday. Her family told reporters Hashemi had been working on a documentary about Black Lives Matter in St. Louis.

The court filing said the journalist has not been accused of any crime, the newspaper said.

The judge said the government plans to release Hashemi as soon as she completed her testimony before a grand jury. The case is related to investigating violations of US criminal law, the report said.