Visit for detained German journalists

Two German journalists detained in Iran since October were told they can have a family visit yesterday, a day after Germany's Foreign Ministry complained that Iran was breaking promises to allow the meetings.

A statement on the website of Iranian state television said officials had cleared the "possibility of a visit" to take place in the north-western city of Tabriz.

In Berlin, a Foreign Ministry spokesman refused to comment on the report. "All I can say is that no meeting has taken place yet," said the spokesman.

The journalists, who have not been named, were reporting for the mass-circulation tabloid Bild am Sonntag. They were arrested while reporting on the case of Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani, who was sentenced to death by stoning for adultery. Iran said they did not have the correct visas.

Bild reported on Sunday that family members would be able to meet with the journalists at an undisclosed location in the Iranian capital, Tehran. The newspaper said that the meeting was first planned for Saturday and then rescheduled for Sunday, but both had been cancelled.