no newspaper even willing to print that news and their protest. Despite its limited circulation and focus on influencing policy, the paper became very popular and helped elect reformist Muhammad Khatami president in 1997. Salam was banned on 7 July 1999 for releasing "an alleged secret memo by a former intelligence agent, urging authorities to tighten restrictions on the press". This "triggering student demonstrations of a magnitude not seen since the 1979 revolution." On 25 July 1999 the Special Clerical Court convicted Khoeiniha as Salam'''s publisher "of defamation and spreading false information in connection with the alleged memo". He was sentenced to three years in prison and a lashing. However, the court suspended this sentence and reduced his sentence to a fine of 23 million rials (US$13,000), "because of his sterling revolutionary credentials". Less than two weeks later the Clergy court "imposed a five-year ban on Salam'' and banned Musavi-Khoeiniha from practicing journalism for three years". The court ruled that the journalist was "guilty of disseminating untruthful and distorted news aimed at harming public opinion." Until 2006, Khoeiniha was not active. He became the leader of the Association of Combatant Clerics when Mehdi Karroubi left the party to establish another one. See also List of Ayatollahs References 1945 births Living people Al-Moussawi family People from Qazvin Iranian ayatollahs Iranian prosecutors People of the Iranian Revolution Association of Combatant Clerics politicians Members of the Expediency Discernment Council Iran hostage crisis Members of the 1st Islamic Consultative Assembly First Deputies of Islamic Consultative Assembly Second Deputies of Islamic Consultative Assembly Iranian newspaper publishers (people) Secretaries-General of political parties in Iran