Iran’s prosecution of Iranian American journalist Roxana Saberi is a "dangerous farce" that must be stopped, says The New York Times.

In a powerful editorial calling for Saberi’s release from Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison, the Gray Lady calls on Iran to stop playing this "absurd game" and trying to use Saberi as some sort of diplomatic negotiating pawn.

The Times says:

There is nothing resembling justice in Iran’s prosecution of Roxana Saberi. The government’s accusations against Ms. Saberi, a journalist with dual American-Iranian citizenship, have fluctuated wildly — culminating only last week with charges that she spied for the United States government … The two countries (U.S. and Iran) have a lot they need to talk about, including their shared interest in controlling Afghanistan’s narcotics industry and ensuring that Iraq’s civil war does not again spin out of control as American troops begin to withdraw. They also have many difficult areas of disagreement, starting with Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Tehran has often demanded that Washington not interfere in its internal affairs. By using Ms. Saberi and many of its own citizens as political pawns, Iran is ensuring that its shockingly poor human rights record will remain a contentious issue between the two countries and make finding rapprochement even harder.

Iran’s Revolution Court has charged Saberi with espionage; it claims she was spying for the U.S. by gathering information illegally on expired press credentials. The State Department said Thursday a verdict of the closed trial will soon be revealed.

The United States is "working hard to secure (her) release," State spokesman Robert Wood said. "These charges, as I said yesterday, are baseless, without foundation … We’ve been very concerned about the transparency of this judicial process."

In other detained-journalist news, today marks one month since Al Gore’s Current TV journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, were detained in North Korea.

Reporters Without Borders once again called for the immediate release of the two women, who were arrested by North Korean security forces on the China border while filming material for a documentary about female refugees. About 1,100 journalists and bloggers have signed a petition of support started by Reporters Without Borders and the International Women’s Media Foundation. Ling — the sister of former ‘View’ host Lisa Ling — and Lee are accused of entering the country "illegally" and carrying out activities hostile to the state. They face up to ten years of forced labor if found guilty.