A British-Iranian woman jailed in Iran after trying to watch a volleyball match is on a hunger strike, refusing food or liquids, her brother told AFP yesterday.

Ghoncheh Ghavami, a 25-year-old law graduate from London, is protesting against a judicial delay in making her one-year prison sentence official, her brother said.

"She's been on hunger strike from Saturday," Iman Ghavami said in a phone interview. "She's not eating any solid foods and she's not drinking any liquids."

Ghavami said that his sister was "frustrated" at her detention without an official sentence.

"The case is in limbo. The investigation is over and the case is closed and the verdict is decided," he said. "I don't understand why they don't want to issue the verdict when they have made the decision. It's quite concerning for us. They have no legal basis to have her detained."