Report: Iran sentences 13 protesters to jail

TEHRAN, Iran – Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency is reporting that a court has handed down prison sentences for 13 protesters arrested during the August 2017 demonstrations over economic hardships.

The Sunday report said that Tehran’s Revolutionary Court sentenced eight of the defendants to six months and the others to one year in prison for “acting against national security by attending illegal gatherings.”

IRNA’s report said that five of protesters are women.

Iran is in the grip of an economic crisis and has seen sporadic protests in recent months as officials try to downplay the effects of the restored U.S. sanctions on Tehran.