Iran suspends prison term of son of dissident cleric Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri

In this Jan. 30, 2003 photo, Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, Iran’s most-senior dissident cleric, (AP FIle Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency is reporting that the country’s judiciary has suspended the prison term of the son of a late dissident cleric. The report says the six-year prison term of Ahmad Montazeri, son of Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, was suspended after approval by the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei following a request by a top cleric.

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The report did not identify the cleric who made the request. A court had sentenced Ahmad Montazeri to prison in November for publishing a tape recording of his father that condemns the execution of thousands of prisoners in 1988.

He began serving his prison term in February but soon was released. The late Montazeri, who died in 2009, was an outspoken critic of the country’s ruling establishment.