British-Iranian student pays for watching a volleyball match, gets sentenced for a year

Iran, Nov 3: It might sound bizzare to you, but in Iran, a British-Iranian student from London's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) has been sentenced to a year in prison for trying to watch a men's volleyball match. In the Islamic Republic, women are banned from watching male sports events such as football and volleyball.

As per reuters, " Ghoncheh Ghavami, 25, was arrested on June 20 outside the city's Azadi Stadium, where she and others were demanding that women be allowed in to watch a volleyball match between Iran and Italy."

As per Iranian media, she was jailed for a year for spreading anti-state propaganda.

Ghavami was in Iran to visit her family and was arrested after a volleyball match in Tehran on June 20.

Lot of support has come in the form of a release petition which has been signed by over 80,000 people who want Iran to let Ghavami go.

But on Sunday, Ghavami has been found guilty of "propagating against the ruling system".

Ghavami's lawyer said, "he was shown the text of the verdict but is still waiting to officially receive it."

A statement from Britain's Foreign Office said, "We have concerns about the grounds for this prosecution, due process during the trial, and Miss Ghavami's treatment whilst in custody."

Ghavami who has been in jail since June has been being kept in solitary detention.

As per a TOI report, "Britain has been trying to diplomatically resolve the shocking case at the highest level with prime minister David Cameron personally urging Iranian president Hassan Rouhani to intervene and release Ghavami."

OneIndia News