Iranian rapper sentenced to death for backing anti-hijab protests

Rapper Toomaj Salehi has been sentenced to death by an Iranian court for supporting anti-hijab protests.

He has been imprisoned for more than a year and a half after expressing support for a wave of demonstrations that erupted following the death of Mahsa Amini, who died in 2022, days after her arrest for wearing an “improper” hijab.

His lawyer, Amir Raisian, announced on Wednesday that “Branch 1 of the Isfahan Revolutionary Court… sentenced Toomaj Salehi to death for corruption on earth.”

Salehi was detained in October 2022 after publicly backing the anti-hijab protests. The Revolutionary Court accused him of “aiding sedition, assembly and conspiracy, propaganda against the regime, and incitement to riot.”

The Iranian Supreme Court reviewed the case and directed the lower court to address “flaws in the sentence.” However, the court refused to follow the Supreme Court’s ruling, asserting its independence.