News

In an interview purportedly with the Iranian woman sentenced to be
stoned to death for adultery, she quelled "rumors" that she had been
lashed 99 times for another alleged offense.

A woman identified as
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani told the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran
Broadcasting on Wednesday that reports were untrue she had been punished
for a published photo of a woman without a headscarf.

"These are all lies and rumor," sadi Ashtiani, whose images in the video footage were blurred.

"By
no means have I been tortured," she said. "These are all my own words,
and no one has forced me to come in front of the camera."

Iranian law requires all women to cover their hair, regardless of
their religion. The Times of London ran the photo on its front page on
August 28, identifying a woman in it as Ashtiani. It later apologized,
saying it misidentified the woman.

The interview, apparently conducted from prison, is the latest in the saga involving the stoning sentence for Ashtiani.

Ashtiani
was convicted of adultery in 2006 and sentenced to death by stoning,
but her son and human rights activists urged help for her this summer,
prompting an international outcry.