Jason Rezaian: End of Iran spy trial for US reporter

Jason Rezaian is exhausted, says his mother

A US reporter detained in Iran for more than a year and charged with espionage has had his final hearing.

The fate of Jason Rezaian, a 39-year-old Washington Post journalist, is expected to be revealed within days.

His defence lawyer, Leila Ashan, submitted a 20-page document and she and Mr Rezaian both gave oral defences. He faces 10 to 20 years in prison.

It was the fourth closed-door hearing in Mr Rezaian's trial, held by Iran's Revolutionary Court in Tehran.

Mr Rezaian's case has been condemned by the Washington Post and press freedom groups.

"He is paying the price of the suspicion, the animosity and the paranoia between the two countries," his mother Mary Rezaian said.

Her son, his wife Salehi and two photojournalists were all arrested in July 2014 in Iran. He was the only one of the group not to be released.

He was charged with espionage and distributing propaganda against the Islamic Republic.

Mr Rezaian's wife and mother maintain his innocence

"It remains unclear even to Jason's lawyer what might happen next," said the Post's executive editor Martin Baron. "The process has been anything but transparent and just, and that pattern persists."

"The only thing that is clear is Jason's innocence."

The Post filed a petition with the United Nations Human Rights Council's Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions in an attempt to influence Iran to release him.

Mr Rezaian's mother said he is "lonely" and "exhausted."