Iran's government is to discuss Sunday a letter said to have been sent by one of eight environmentalists convicted of security offences in which she alleges she was tortured in prison.

"I haven't seen this letter and I'm not aware of its contents, but on Sunday at the cabinet meeting I will discuss the matter," First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri was quoted as saying Wednesday.

"If necessary, we will appoint people within the government to discuss (this issue) with the head of the judiciary," he said, according to semi-official news agency ISNA and other local media.

His comments were in response to "a question about a letter published by one of the accused in the environmental activist case", ISNA and the Khabaronline news website said.

In the letter, the woman claimed she had been "mistreated in a manner that violated humane standards" while in detention, the two news outlets reported.

Jahangiri was reacting to revelations in the foreign media about a letter allegedly sent by Niloufar Bayani to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In it, Bayani, a former representative of the UN Environment Programme in Iran, complained she had been tortured and repeatedly threatened with rape by her jailers in order to extract a confession.

Another letter reportedly from Bayani to the head of her section in Tehran's Evin prison asked him to intervene to stop the constant threats of sexual abuse and pressure she alleged she was subjected to.

A leading reformist figure, Mostafa Tajzadeh, took to Twitter to condemn the allegations and call on President Hassan Rouhani and the judiciary to act so that truth emerges and culprits are punished.

Eight environmentalists received jail sentences of up to 10 years in Iran for espionage, conspiring with the United States and damaging national security, the judiciary said Tuesday.

Bayani and two others received the maximum for "conspiring with America as a hostile government", judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said.

The UN Environment Programme has called Bayani a "much-valued colleague".

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Iran environmentalists jailed up to 10 years for spying
Tehran (AFP) Feb 18, 2020
An Iranian appeals court has upheld jail sentences of up to 10 years against eight environmentalists convicted of spying, conspiring with Washington and damaging national security, the judiciary said Tuesday. "The appeals court endorsed and finalised the sentences of the suspects in the so-called environmentalists' case, as we believe it to be a case of acting against national security," judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said. The eight were handed sentences of four to 10 years, with Mor ... read more