Iran detains husband of jailed hunger-striking rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh

Iranian authorities on Tuesday detained the husband of prominent jailed human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh.

Famed rights lawyer Sotoudeh, 55, was arrested in June and told she had already been found guilty "in absentia" on spying charges by Tehran's Revolutionary Court. 

One of her lawyers, Payam Derafshan, said her trial took place some time ago, but that the sentence was not implemented until she represented several women arrested earlier this year for protesting against the mandatory wearing of the Islamic headscarf in public. 

On 25 August, Sotoudeh wrote a letter from Evin prison that was posted to her Facebook profile declaring that she was going on a hunger strike to protest the continued pressure on her family and friends.

Read also: Iranian rights activists join in hunger strike behind bars

"First the authorities jail Nasrin Sotoudeh on bogus charges, then harass, intimidate and threaten her family and friends, and now arrest her husband," Amnesty International said on in a statement.

"These callous actions illustrate the lengths to which Iranian authorities will go to silence human rights lawyers, even targeting their families."

Prior to his arrest, Reza Khandan had raised concerns on social media about human rights violations in Iran, including the detention of rights activists and the prosecution of women who campaigned against forced veiling.

"The Iranian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release both Nasrin Sotoudeh and Reza Khandan," Amnesty added.

"They must drop all charges against them and stop their harassment of this family once and for all."

In Iran, women showing their hair in public face penalties ranging from a $25 fine to prison time.

Authorities - dominated by hardliners and conservatives - have waged a war against activists, reformists and liberals in Iran.

Protests during the new year against the economic situation in Iran has seen the regime rattled, with waves of arrests against demonstrators and many killed.