The son of Iranian woman Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, sentenced to death by stoning, asked the Iranian judiciary on Saturday to spare his mother's life.
Sajjad Ghaderzadeh, who faces his own court case after talking to two German reporters about his mother's sentence, told a news conference his mother had violated Islamic law but called for compassion and forgiveness.
"In my opinion my mother is also guilty but since we have lost our father we do not want to lose our mother too. Consequently, we ask for a commutation of the penalty," he told reporters in the city of Tabriz, in northwestern Iran.
Ashtiani is accused of adultery and being complicit in her husband's murder. Her sentence to be stoned to death was suspended after an international outcry, but she still faces possible execution by hanging. [ID:nHOS163362]
Ghaderzadeh said: "The stoning sentence is on the file but it may not be carried out. At least this is what we are hoping."
Two reporters from German tabloid Bild am Sonntag were arrested in October while interviewing Ghaderzadeh after entering Iran on tourist visas. Berlin has called for them to be released.
Ghaderzadeh was released on $40,000 bail while a court considers his case.
Iranian officials say Ashtiani's case is purely a matter for the judiciary. It has become an international cause and more than 80 world artists, academics and politicians have called for her release.
© 2013 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.