An Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning was filmed at her home, sparking confusion over whether she had been freed, while a Canadian-Iranian blogger was temporarily released on $1.5 million bail.
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, a 43-year-old mother of two, was convicted of adultery in 2006.
Iran has not confirmed her release, but a television crew filmed her at her home. Some reports suggested she was filming a confession.
The news of her unconfirmed release prompted cautious optimism from supporters around the world.
One of those supporters is Prime Minister Stephen Harper's wife, Laureen Harper, who called the news "encouraging" in a statement to CTV News.
Meanwhile, an Iranian rights group says blogger Hossein Derakhshan, 35, is out on bail but must return to prison within a week.
Iran sentenced him to 19 years in prison for several offences, including spreading propaganda against the ruling establishment and insulting Islamic thoughts and religious figures.
He was also convicted of promoting counter-revolutionary groups and working with "enemy states," because he visited Israel five years ago.
Derakhshan attended university in Canada and holds Canadian citizenship, but Iran does not recognize his Canadian passport.
He's considered to be an Internet pioneer for founding the first Farsi-language blog 10 years ago, and supporting free expression online.
He's sometimes known as the Iranian "blogfather."
With files from The Associated Press
