Prominent Iranian academic Mr Hashem Aghajari has been sentenced to death by a closed-door court that deemed his criticism of the ruling Shiite Muslim clergy to be an insult to Islam.
Mr Aghajari (45) was arrested on August 8th after calling for a "religious renewal" of Shiite Islam. He said it was in dire need of structural reforms and that Muslims "should not blindly follow" religious leaders - comments that openly questioned the very foundations of the Islamic republic.
Reformist officials said the writer, who lost a leg during the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war and who teaches history at Tehran University, was also sentenced to eight years in jail, 74 lashes and a 10-year ban on teaching.
His lawyer, Mr Saleh Nikbakht, said Mr Aghajari, an ally of President Mr Mohammad Khatami and a disabled veteran of the Iran-Iraq war, would appeal yesterday's judgment made by a court in the western city of Hamedan.
His sentencing coincides with a dramatic reformist bid to stem the power of the hardline-controlled judiciary by giving Mr Khatami the right to suspend court rulings he deems to be unconstitutional.
"With this verdict, they are seeking to create a climate of terror for reformists," MP Mr Ali Shakourirad told journalists. "This verdict has nothing to do with justice".
Mr Aghajari is a member of the broadly-secular leftist Organization of Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution (OMIR), a leading party and pioneer of reforms in Iran's government.
AFP