An Iranian court has rejected an appeal by a journalist who was convicted during a mass trial of opposition activists last August.
The wife of Ahmad Zeidabadi says she was told Sunday that an appeals court confirmed her husband's six-year prison sentence, five of which will be spent in exile in the remote town of Gonabad. He also received a lifelong ban from political activity.
Zeidabadi, a former student opposition leader, was among hundreds of defendants tried together for involvement in large street protests after the contested June re-election of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Opposition protesters have continued to stage sporadic street demonstrations despite a crackdown by Tehran's government. At least eight people were killed last week during bloody clashes between security forces and activists.