Iran Releases Filmmaker Linked To BBC

Tehran has released an Iranian filmmaker linked to the Persian program of the BBC.

Opposition websites said Mojtaba Mirtahmaseb was released on December 11 from the notorious Evin prison in northern Tehran.

He had been arrested in September for sending a documentary film critical of the Iranian leadership to the BBC.

The ISNA news agency confirmed his release.

The BBC's Persian-language service is banned in Iran, but Iranians can watch the program via satellite.

The Iranian government accuses the BBC of broadcasting "antirevolutionary programs" to fuel unrest and has banned Iranian reporters and filmmakers from cooperating with the network.

compiled from agency reports