Dart Society

Roxana Saberi spent her 32nd birthday last month in a 10-foot by 12-foot cement cell in Iran's Evin Prison, located in northwestern Tehran.

The Iranian-American journalist was jailed there from late January until her release in mid-May. She was initially charged with working illegally in Iran, but on April 18th was convicted of espionage and sentenced to eight years in prison. Roxana repeatedly declared her innocence, and her case gained international attention.

The Fargo, N.D., native had been living in Iran for the past six years and had worked as a freelance reporter for several news organizations including the British Broadcasting Corporation and National Public Radio. In February, Roxana called her father Reza Saberi to say she had been arrested. Two months later, Reza flew to Tehran to help secure his daughter's release. He said he would remain in the country as long as it took to bring Roxana home.

Mr. Saberi was granted special permission to visit his daughter on her birthday in April. He said that although she wore a hijab, he could tell she was weak and had lost weight from a hunger strike begun April 21 to protest her innocence. Roxana ultimately began eating again after being taken to the prison hospital and fed intravenously.

Devin Robins spoke with Mr. Saberi after he'd visited Roxana on her birthday. He said he and his wife were "holding on for our daughter" and were very grateful for the international support they've received. He described how Roxana was holding up, physically and mentally. 

Click here or The Play Button below to listen to Robins' interview with Reza Saberi. 

Devin Robins is an award-winning journalist who began her career at National Public Radio in 1997. During her tenure at NPR, she worked for several national radio shows including "Talk of the Nation," "The Tavis Smiley Show" and "News and Notes." Her work has included producing more than 100 hours of NPR's live news coverage of the September 11th terrorist attacks, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.