Woman in Iran Could be Hanged in Adultery Case (VIDEO)

By Myles Collier, Christian Post Contributor
Monday, December 26, 2011

An Iranian woman accused of adultery and was sentenced to be stoned to death may have her execution changed to hanging instead, the Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) reported.

Iran Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani Likely to Remain in Jail Another Year
Decision Stalled on Iranian Pastor Sentenced to Death
Religious Leaders Call for Prayer and Protection of Global Christians During Christmas

A court sentenced Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani to be stoned in 2006 but the sentence was suspended last year after a large and prominent international plea. Her case is reportedly under judicial review and she still could be hanged.

"There is no rush ... our Islamic experts are reviewing Ashtiani's sentence to see whether we can carry out the execution of a person sentenced to stoning by hanging," said Malek Ajdar Sharifi, head of the judiciary in the East Azerbaijan province, according to Reuters.

Ashtiani's husband was murdered in 2005, after which an Iranian court convicted the mother of two of having an "illicit relationship" with two men. She was sentenced to death by stoning in 2006, according to MSNBC.

Amnesty International reported she received 99 lashes as her sentence but she was subsequently convicted of "adultery while being married,” which the human rights group said she denied.

Ashtiani is already serving 10 years for being an accessory to her husband's murder in a prison in East Azerbaijan. She has maintained her innocence.

A local judiciary official said last year that the stoning of Ashtiani had been suspended due to "humanitarian reservations," but did not rule out possibility of her execution, ABC Sydney reported.

"The sentence of Ashtiani will be carried out as soon as our experts announce their view," the official said.

The Vatican has come out in the defense of Ashtiani while using other diplomatic options. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said the Catholic Church opposes the death penalty in general.

"When the Holy See is asked, in an appropriate way, to intervene in humanitarian issues with the authorities of other countries, as it has happened many times in the past, it does so not in a public way, but through its own diplomatic channels," Lombardi said in a statement.