Watchdog

Iranian activist Shahnaz Gholami, the editor of the "Azerzan" blog, has been freed on bail in Tabriz after spending more than two months in prison, Radio Farda reported.

Gholami is accused of "spreading lies" in the writings on her blog. She had gone on a hunger strike in prison to protest against the conditions of her detention.

Gholami was sentenced to six months in prison, but her lawyer, Naghi Mahmud, appealed the sentence. Mahmud told Radio Farda that a date for her appeal hearing has not been set.

Gholami is an active defender of the rights of the Azeri minority and women in Iran.

Iran's semiofficial Fars news agency has confirmed that two brothers whose AIDS-prevention work gained them international recognition are among four Iranian nationals charged recently with trying to topple the government, Reuters reported.

Kamiar and Arash Alaei have been in custody since June, and the European Union has called for their release.Rights groups including Human Rights Watch, the International Campaign for Human Rights, and Physicians for Human Rights have condemned the arrests and legal processes as unfair.

Reports had already emerged suggesting the Alaei brothers were convicted in a secret trial in early January.