In Summary
- According to is lawyer, rapper Toomaj Salehi has been sentenced to death for supporting anti-government protests.
- He was sentenced in July 2023 to six years and three months prison after avoiding a death sentence due to a Supreme Court ruling.
- He now has 20 days to appeal against the ruling.
According to is lawyer, rapper Toomaj Salehi has been sentenced to death for supporting anti-government protests.
This is not the first time he has been jailed. It all started in 2022 when a woman died in police custody after allegedly wearing an “improper” hijab.
Recently Iranian police have intensified their presence on the streets to enforce Islamist dress codes for women.
The rapper was first arrested in October 2022 after making public statements in support of protests and he was charged with numerous offenses.
He was sentenced in July 2023 to six years and three months prison after avoiding a death sentence due to a Supreme Court ruling.
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But in January, Isfahan’s Revolutionary Court accused Mr Salehi of new charges in addition to those he had been acquitted of earlier, his lawyer said.
Mr Reasian spoke to a newspaper and said the revolutionary court ignored Supreme Court’s ruling for clemency. However, they issued new charges before handing down “the harshest punishment”.
Mr Salehi is Issued a Death Sentence
The charges he was found guilty of included corruption on earth on several charges, “Baghi” [armed rebellion], assembly and collusion, propaganda against the ruling establishment and inciting riot.
The moment all the drama began in 2022, he was banned from performing at any shows or concerts and ended up only posting his songs on social media.
Through his songs and lyrics he boldly criticized the leadership of Iran for their corruption and crackdowns on dissent.
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After being arrested in 2023, he was released on bail in November the same year. He made a clip saying how he had been tortured but had no evidence. This led to him being arrested a few days later after his release.
He now has 20 days to appeal against the ruling.
