Akbar Ganji, jailed in 2001 after writing articles linking senior Iranian officials to the murder of dissidents, has been released.

An excerpt from the BBC story:

Correspondents say he is a hero to Iran's reformists for standing up to hardliners, and many world leaders have called for his release.

He has spent much of his jail term in solitary confinement and went on hunger strike for several months last year.

When brought to court to stand trial, Ganji complained he had been beaten but he says he was then threatened for revealing it.

The BBC's Frances Harrison in Tehran says many Iranians thought Ganji, 46, would never be freed from jail, even though his sentence was due to end.

The release comes days before the United Nations Security Council is due to discuss Iran's stand-off with Western nations over the country's nuclear programme.