Overview
- Parliament approved the bill’s general framework on Sunday, Aug. 16, 2026, but lawmakers must still vote article by article and send a final version to the Guardian Council before it can become law.
- The draft would ban interviews and participation in discussions with media Tehran designates as hostile, naming outlets linked to the United States and Israel, with proposed prison terms of six months to two years for violations.
- More severe provisions would target activity judged carried out under foreign direction, including policy proposals and economic crimes, with penalties up to 30 years and cases routed to Revolutionary Courts.
- The bill would also require prior notification to the intelligence ministry for other foreign media contacts, bar unapproved communication with embassies or foreign groups, restrict scientific cooperation to an approved list, and ban sharing information without intelligence ministry approval.
- Enforcement could be swift because a 2025 post-war law already criminalizes cooperation with states Tehran calls hostile and was used this month to sentence photojournalist Yalda Moaiery to 15 years, illustrating the real-world impact on journalists, academics and others who work with foreign entities.