Sayed Pervez Kambaksh, the student journalist sentenced to death in Afghanistan who The Independent launched a campaign to save, has been ordered to spend 20 years in prison.
The Independent first reported on Pervez Kambaksh in January 2008, when he was sentenced to death for blasphemy.
The paper said the 23-year-old had simply read about women’s rights.
The appeal led to international pressure on the Afghan government, including a message of support from former US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice.
His death sentence was lifted in October, but a 20-year sentence was imposed, and upheld this week.
His only hope is now a presidential pardon.
The Independent’s leader called Pervez Kambaksh a ‘victim of the Taliban”.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
