Tehran, Sept 22, IRNA -- A Tehran press jury has found the editor of the Persian daily Hambastegi, Gholam-Heydar Ebrahimbay-Salami, guilty on a series of charges, including libel, publishing lies and instigating public opinion.

The Tehran Justice Department on Sunday issued a statement, saying the jury convicted the editor on charges brought by several people, including one by the head of the supervisory Guardians Council, Ahmad Jannati.

Salami was also convicted on charge of propagating against the Islamic Republic in his publication, but the jury exonerated him of other indictments and announced him deserving leniency in punishment, the statement added.

The editor faced at least 53 counts of complaints in the court, brought by several institutions, including the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, the State Inspectorate Organization, police and the daily Kayhan.

Salami, who is also a Majlis representative from the northeastern constituency of Khaf and Roshtkhar in Khorassan province, is now awaiting sentence.

He had another suit lodged against him at the court by Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Shahroudi who retracted it later.

Salami was called to appear before court first in July for publishing articles which complained of lack of security in Iranian universities and prostitution gangs as well as alleged restrictions imposed by the Guardians Council and the arbitrative Expediency Council on the parliament.

Iranian courts have summoned scores of journalists and revoked the licenses of their publications for 'publishing lies and instigating the public opinion'.