A revolutionary court in Tehran on Saturday sentenced seven dissidents to terms of imprisonment for undermining state security and breaches of Islamic norms.
The most prominent defendant, Mr Akbar Ganji, a leading investigative journalist, received the stiffest sentence: 10 years in jail and five years of internal exile. Mr Ganji made powerful enemies in the conservative faction which controls the armed forces and the judiciary by revealing that intelligence agents were responsible for the "serial murders" of five reformist intellectuals in 1998.
Mr Said Sadr, a translator at the German embassy, also received a 10-year sentence, while Mr Khalil Rostamkhani, another translator, was given nine years.
A student leader, Mr Ali Afshari, was imprisoned for five years, and an opposition figure, Mr Izzatollah Shahabi, for 4 1/2 years. Two feminists, Ms Shahla Lahini, a publisher, and Ms Mehrangiz Kar, a lawyer, received four years each. All are expected to appeal.
Three were given suspended sentences or fines; six were acquitted. The case of Mr Hassan Yussefi-Eshkevari, a cleric, was referred to the special clerical court and the verdict is unknown.
The reformists were prosecuted for attending a conference in Berlin last April under the auspices of the German Green Party. The conference collapsed in disarray after opposition exiles heckled speakers, attacking the Islamic system which governs Iran, while others attempted to shock participants.
One woman performed a provocative dance, another stripped to her underwear and a man disrobed.
These images caused an uproar when they were broadcast on Iranian state television. A majority of the members of parliament denounced the conference as "counter-revolutionary" and insulting to Iran.
It is ironic that the sentencing of Mr Ganji should take place on the very day the prosecution completed its case in the Tehran military court of 17 intelligence ministry officials charged with the very murders he investigated. All but two of the accused pleaded guilty during the closed trial.
The consequences for the June presidential poll of the verdicts on the Berlin group are uncertain. The reformist camp could be stirred to campaign hard to secure the re-election of President Muhammad Khatami, or suffer severe demoralisation.
Since reformists won control of parliament last year the conservatives have closed down liberal newspapers, blocked legislation and used the courts to remove progressives from influential positions.
However, yesterday's sweeping parliamentary approval of all five of Mr Khatami's new ministerial appointments could offset the negative impact of the verdicts and encourage him to run again.
