Afghanistan "appreciates the concern expressed on his behalf," the government said in a statement released by the Afghan Embassy in Washington.

"The office of President [Hamid] Karzai is closely monitoring the case and working with Afghanistan's judicial system to find a just solution in accordance with Afghan law and our nation's international obligations."

Parwez Kambaksh, 23, was sentenced to death after he was tried and convicted in a Mazar-e-Sharif court on January 22 for distributing an article that commented on Quranic verses that deal with women.

Part of the article discussed whether a Muslim man should have the right to marry more than one woman, and prosecutors deemed the work offensive to