Iranian reformer arrested

A leading reformist cleric in Iran, Hassan Youssefi Eshkevari, has been arrested on his return to Tehran from an extended visit to Europe.

Reports say he'd just got home from the airport -- after a warm welcome from his supporters -- when the police arrived, searched his house and took him into custody.

Mr Eshkevari is to be charged with acting against national security, spreading propaganda and insulting Islamic values.

The Special Court for Clergy had issued a warrant for his arrest after he told a conference in Germany in April that Iranian women should be free to choose whether to wear Islamic dress. Several other Iranian delegates to the conference were also arrested on their return home, but -- with one exception, the opposition leader, Ezzatollah Sahabi, -- were later released.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service