The son of former Iranian President Rafsanjani has been imprisoned by a court in Tehran. Unofficial reports say the sentence is 15 years but this has not yet been confirmed.Government media said Mehdi Hashemi Rafsanjani had been convicted of security and financial crimes. He was accused of inciting unrest after the nation's disputed elections in 2009 and was arrested on his return from exile in the UK in 2012.
Mehdi Hashemi went on trial last August at Iran's Revolutionary Court, which usually hears security cases. The exact charges are unknown, because his trial was held behind closed doors.
Many see his sentence as an attempt by hardliners to damage his father's reputation before parliamentary elections next February. Last week, Rafsanjani was overwhelmingly defeated by hardliner Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi in a vote to become the new head of Iran's top clerical body, the Assembly of Experts.