TEHRAN, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Human rights activists Sunday decried the death sentence imposed on an Iranian woman who claimed her victim was trying to rape her.
Afsaneh Noroozi, 32, has been jailed since 1997 for the stabbing death of the chief of police intelligence on the island of Kish.
The chief, whose name was not made public, was a friend of Noroozi's family, and she was at his house as a guest, The New York Times reported. During her trial, Noroozi testified she killed him in self defense.
The Shargh newspaper reported Noroozi has been notified that her final appeal was denied and executions are usually conducted within days after a ruling has been delivered.
Human rights workers and advocates for women's rights have condemned the ruling, saying that it is a violation of the right of a woman to defend her honor.
Only Iran's supreme religious leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, can stop the execution.
