Iranian-British woman jailed in Tehran after attending volleyball match

Ghoncheh Ghavami was detained in June at a Tehran’s Freedom Stadium after trying to attend a men’s volleyball match between Iran and Italy.

TEHRAN // An Iranian-British woman detained while trying to attend a men’s volleyball game has been sentenced to one year in prison.

A court found Ghoncheh Ghavami, 25, guilty of “propagating against the ruling system”, said her lawyer Mahmoud Alizadeh Tabatabaei on Sunday.

Britain said it was concerned about the sentence.

“We are concerned about reports that Ghoncheh Ghavami has been sentenced to 12 months in prison for ‘propaganda against the state’,” the UK 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 was detained in June 20 at a Tehran’s Freedom Stadium after trying to attend a men’s volleyball match between Iran and Italy.

Women are banned from attending male-only matches in Iran and Ghavami tried to enter the match with other women to protest the ban, according to Amnesty International.

Women who sought to attend the World League match in June were reportedly turned away from the stadium. Female photographers inside the complex were also ordered to leave though none were arrested.

Ghavami was held for a few hours and then released but she was detained again a few days later. She stood trial last month.

Since her detention, Ghavami has been held in solitary confinement at Tehran’s Evin prison, according to Amnesty, which has criticised her detention.

She began a hunger strike earlier this month over her detention.

Iran’s judiciary spokesman, Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi, said last month of reports linking Ghavami’s arrest to volleyball: “Her case has nothing to do with sports.”

* Associated Press, with additional reporting from Agence France-Presse