Tehran: Iran said on Tuesday that a sentence of
death by stoning against a woman convicted of adultery that
has sparked an international outcry remained stayed pending a
final decision by the judiciary.
Mother-of-two Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani also reportedly
received a 10-year jail sentence after being found guilty of
participating in her husband's murder.
"Ms Mohammadi's case is being examined. The sentence for
illicit relations has been stayed and is being reviewed,"
foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told a weekly
press conference.
He said a review of the sentence handed down for her
alleged role in her husband's murder was also under way and
that a final decision was pending.
Mohammadi-Ashtiani's son, Sajjad, told a Paris news
conference yesterday that he feared his mother would be
executed after the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan
later this week.
"Ramadan is coming to an end and, according to Islamic
law, executions can resume," he told the news conference by
telephone.
Mehmanparast said that calls by both Italian Foreign
Minister Franco Frattini and his French counterpart Bernard
Kouchner for talks on Mohammadi-Ashtiani's case "could be a
positive act ... and beneficial to discussion of bilateral and
international issues."
"But if they say things based on wrong information, it
would be beneath their positions," the ministry spokesman
added.
PTI
First Published: Tuesday, September 07, 2010, 23:34