Former VOA Farsi service journalist kills himself in Iran after demanding release of prisoners

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian authorities say a former journalist with the Voice of America’s Farsi service jumped to his death from a building in Iran’s capital in protest of the country’s supreme leader and an ongoing crackdown on dissent in the Islamic Republic. An official in Iran’s presidency acknowledged the death Wednesday night of Kianoosh Sanjari, who had earlier demanded the release of four prisoners held in the country and threatened to kill himself if they weren’t released. Sanjari was known as a dissident political activist in Iran. He spent two years in prison over security charges in the country after returning to Iran from living abroad in 2016.