TEHERAN - Iran will soon free a female US hiker detained in the country for more than a year for alleged spying, officials said, with some indicating that she would be released on Saturday.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told English-language Press TV on Friday that Sarah Shourd, one of the three US hikers currently held in Iran, will be "released soon to rejoin her family".

"Discussions are still ongoing regarding the details and the date of her release," he said, adding that her release was an act of "Islamic compassion" and was taken after discussions that involved President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.