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Iran releases human rights activist

AN IRANIAN court has released a prominent human-rights activist who campaigned against the death penalty.

Later confirmed by her husband, the semi-official ISNA news agency quoted judiciary official Sadegh Niaraki today as saying that Narges Mohammadi was freed late on Wednesday after serving eight-and-a-half years in prison.

She had been sentenced to 10 years in 2016 while already incarcerated.

Mr Niaraki said that Ms Mohammadi was released based on a law that allows a prison sentence to be commuted if the relevant court agrees to it.

In July, Amnesty International demanded Ms Mohammadi’s release because she was showing suspected Covid-19 symptoms and was at serious risk due to pre-existing health conditions.

The ISNA report did not refer to her possible illness.

Ms Mohammadi had been sentenced in Tehran’s Revolutionary Court on charges including planning crimes to harm the security of Iran, spreading propaganda against the government and forming and managing an illegal group.

An engineer and physicist, she was awarded the 2018 Andrei Sakharov Prize, which recognises outstanding leadership or achievements of scientists in upholding human rights.

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