The death sentence against Iranian human rights activist Sharifeh Mohammadi has been overturned by the country's Supreme Court, according to her lawyer. The case against the 45-year-old activist should be re-examined in a new trial, lawyer Amir Raesian told the daily newspaper "Shargh".

Mohammadi was arrested in Rasht in the north of the country in December last year and has been held in various prisons since then. In July, she was sentenced to death by a revolutionary court for "armed rebellion against the state" (baghi). Mohammadi's family then hired a new team of lawyers to force an appeal.

According to Amnesty International, the death sentence against Mohammadi was based on her commitment to women's and workers' rights and the abolition of the death penalty, as well as her previous membership in the trade union-affiliated organization "Komiteye-Hamahangi".

According to the organization, the activist was also repeatedly tortured and mistreated in custody in order to force her to "confess." She is currently in Lakan detention center in Gilan province on the Caspian Sea.