Imprisoned Iranian filmmaker beaten badly, says opposition website

TEHRAN, Iran – TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — An Iranian opposition website says that an imprisoned filmaker has been badly beaten and his sight damaged.

Mohammad Nourizad was sentenced to three and a half years in prison in April on charges of spreading propaganda against the government and insulting the country's leaders.

The Kaleme website said Thursday that after the beating he was put in solitary confinement and is now on a hunger strike. The site did not give its sources but mentioned that Nourizad had spoken with his family.

The filmmaker was arrested in November after sending a letter to the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, urging him to apologize to the nation for the bloody crackdown on the opposition after the disputed June presidential elections.