Iranian student activist and women human rights defender Bahareh Hedayat has been released from prison after serving nearly seven years.
Hedayat was arrested on the night of December 31, 2009 by the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence. She was sentenced to two years for "insulting the Supreme Leader of Iran," six months for "insulting the President," five years for "acting against national security and publishing falsehoods," and an additional two years for "holding a protest gathering for women."
Hedayat is one among scores of activists, intellectuals, and reformist figures arrested and sentenced to prison during the state crackdown that followed the disputed 2009 reelection of Iran's former president Mahmud Ahmadinejad.
Endangered Scholars Worldwide welcomes this news with great relief and calls for the protection and security of Hedayat following her release.