Soltani was previously arrested in 2009 during the protests that followed the presidential election on 12 June. His arrest was based on allegations of fraud relating to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's victory. He was held for 70 days and released on bail of $100,000.

According to Amnesty International, Soltani was also arrested in July 2005 and spent 219 days in detention, including 43 days in solitary confinement, and in 2006 was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for disclosing confidential documents.

In May 2007 he was acquitted of all charges brought against him since his 2005 arrest but was banned from travelling outside Iran. This prevented him from accepting a human rights award in December 2008 from Germany's Human Rights Office in Nuremberg.

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