Washington Post reporter jailed in Iran since July was central to failed US bargaining attempts with Islamic Republic on nuclear matters, essentially functioning as a hostage. lran repeatedly ignores US requests for access to the reporter, a dual Iran-US citizen married to an Iranian woman who's also a journalist

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"The case of Rezaian...has been repeatedly raised by the State Department in its talks with Tehran about a deal to curb Iran's nuclear programme."...
 
12/7/14, "Washington Post reporter charged by Tehran court," Washington Post, Carol Morello

"Jason Rezaian, a Washington Post reporter detained in Iran for more than four months, was officially charged Saturday in a day-long proceeding in a Tehran courtroom, according to a source familiar with the case.

The nature of the charges was not immediately clear, at least to those not present in the courtroom. The court appearance came two days after word arrived in the West that Rezaian’s detention has been extended until mid-January because the investigation against him is continuing.

The charges were the first lodged since Rezaian, an Iranian American who holds dual citizenship, was arrested July 22....

Secretary of State John Kerry, in a statement issued early Sunday, said that the “Iranian government continues to deny our repeated requests for Consular Access to Jason by our Protecting Power, the Swiss, so we are unable to check on his condition or ensure adequate legal representation.”

Kerry said he had “repeatedly raised Jason’s case, and the other cases of detained or missing U.S. citizens, directly with Iranian officials. “Jason poses no threat to the Iranian government or to Iran’s national security. We call on the Iranian government to drop any and all charges against Jason and release him immediately so that he can be reunited with his family,” Kerry said.

There are divergent views in Iran about the arrest of Rezaian, who has been The Post’s bureau chief in Tehran since 2012."...

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12/7/14, "Washington Post reporter in Tehran charged," Reuters

"A reporter for the Washington Post in Iran who has been detained for over four months was charged on Saturday, the newspaper reported, quoting a source familiar with the case.

It said the nature of the charges levelled at a daylong proceeding in a Tehran courtroom was not immediately clear.

Jason Rezaian, an Iranian-American who holds dual citizenship, had been the Washington Post's bureau chief in Tehran since 2012, the paper said on its website.

"We are dismayed and outraged by reports that Jason Rezaian, The Post's correspondent in Iran, has now been charged with unspecified crimes," Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron said in a statement.

Rezaian was arrested on July 22. Iranian authorities had said earlier this week they were extending his detention while the investigation against him continued, the paper said.

Rezaian's family has hired an attorney, but the lawyer has not been allowed to visit him, it added.

"The Iranian government has never explained why Jason was detained or why he has been held for more than four months without access to a lawyer. Jason is an American citizen who was acting as a fully accredited journalist. If he has indeed been charged, we know that any fair legal proceeding would quickly determine that any allegations against him are baseless," Baron added.

The Post quoted the source, which it said was speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case, as saying that the journalist spent some 10 hours in court on Saturday while a judge reviewed his case and that he was accompanied by a translator because he cannot read Farsi. 

It quoted the source as adding that Rezaian had signed a document saying he understood that he was being charged.

It could now take another month for the charges to be delivered to the full court, which would then set a trial date, the paper quoted the source as saying. It said the lawyer may now be permitted to speak to the journalist.

The case of Rezaian, whose family says is suffering multiple health complaints while in detention at Tehran's notorious Evin prison, has been repeatedly raised by the State Department in its talks with Tehran about a deal to curb Iran's nuclear programme, the paper said."

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The WaPo reporter's Iranian wife, also a journalist, was arrested with him in July but was released on bail in October:
 
12/7/14, "Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian charged by Iran court," BBC

"Iranian-US citizen Jason Rezaian, 38, and his Iranian wife Yeganeh Salehi, were taken into custody in July....

Yeganeh Salehi, also a journalist, was released on bail in October." 





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