国际英语新闻：Iran hopes "basic changes," "amendments" to jailed U.S.-Iranian reporter's case

TEHRAN, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Both the lawyer of the case and some Iranian officials have expressed hope that there would be "basic changes" and "amendments" to the jailed U.S.-Iranian reporter's case.

    On Sunday, after the session of an Iranian court held to hear the detained reporter's appeal concerning the charges of espionage, the lawyer of the case Abdolsamad Khoramshahi told reporters that he is "optimistic that there would be basic changes in the (previously) issued verdict in favor of Ms. Saberi," according to local IRNA news agency.

    Khoramshahi who seemed to be content with whatever had happened in the appeal court said that the court session was held in "good conditions" and his colleague and he were given adequate time to defend their client.

    "Saberi's appeal was heard this morning for four hours and the court will announce the verdict by next week," he said, expressing satisfaction with the court's condition for providing a chance for the hearings of both sides, the local ISNA news agency reported.

    Roxana Saberi, a 32-year-old dual Iranian-American national, had reported as a freelance journalist for various news organizations including the BBC and U.S. National Public Radio (NPR).

    According to Iranian authorities, Saberi had been denied press credentials since 2006, but she defied the ban and continued her journalistic activities.

    Last month, Iran's Revolutionary Court sentenced her to eight years in jail on charges of espionage. But the deputy head of the Iranian prosecutor's office said that the reporter may enjoy sentence "amendments" on appeal.

    "The case will be reviewed by the court of appeal and amendments will be made to the sentence should there be room for amendments," Hassan Zare Dehnavi, known as Judge Haddad, was quoted as saying by local Press TV.

    Accordingly, Iran's judiciary spokesman Ali Reza Jamshidi expressed hope that the U.S.-Iranian reporter's sentence would be "reconsidered" in the appeals court.

    Iran's high-ranking officials have also urged the country's judiciary to carry out a "fair" and "full" investigation into the case with the hope that there might be an ease in the appeal court's final verdict release.

    In April, 48 hours after the judiciary disclosed the sentence, Iran's judiciary chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, in an order to the chief of Tehran's Administration of Justice Ali Reza Avaiee, asked for a "careful, speedy, fair" and "full" investigation into the case of Roxana Saberi during her appeal.

    In another letter issued by Iranian President's office to Tehran's prosecutor, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad asked the judiciary to preserve justice in considering the accusations aimed at the convicted journalist.

    "Referring to the president's insistence, all the legal processes considering the accusations should be carried out carefully and on the basis of justice," the letter said.

    According to IRNA, the letter asked Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi to "personally make sure that the accused will enjoy all freedom and legal rights to defend (herself) against the charges and no small rights (of her) will be violated."

    While Iran adapts a soft position with respect to the "amendments" on the issued sentence, the country's officials are sensitive about the foreign attempts to influence the country's authority over the decisions underway.

    Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi has asked the United States not to interfere with this issue, saying the case is a strictly domestic matter and other countries should end hyping the issue.