Dissident Iranian Rapper Toomaj Salehi Reincarcerated Shortly After Recent Release
Iranian dissident rapper Toomaj Salehi, recently released from prison, has been rearrested in northern Iran, confirming the ongoing suppression of artistic voices in the country
Toomaj Salehi, a dissident rapper from Iran, was arrested again in northern Iran on Thursday, just two weeks after being released from prison. His official social media channel reported the news. Salehi had been previously detained for over a year, spending most of that time in solitary confinement. He faced charges related to his support of the protest movement in Iran last year.
According to local sources and witnesses, Salehi and his friends were aggressively apprehended while strolling on a street in Babol city on Thursday. A group of armed men reportedly appeared out of nowhere and began assaulting Salehi and his companions without identifying themselves, as per witnesses. The men in plain clothes allegedly used the ends of their rifles to repeatedly strike the rapper before blindfolding him and taking him into custody.
32-year-old Salehi showed his support for the protests following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman who passed away after being detained by the "morality police" for not wearing her hijab correctly and taken to a "re-education center". During the nationwide protests in mid-September last year, Salehi urged Iranians to demonstrate against the government.
Salehi, of Bakhtiari descent, has consistently used his music to promote unity among Iranians of diverse backgrounds, acknowledging Iran's multi-ethnic population. Following his arrest during the peak of the protests in October 2022, he was given a sentence of six years and three months in prison. However, after a successful appeal filed by his attorney with Isfahan's Revolutionary Court, Salehi was released on bail from an Isfahan prison on November 18, as reported by Irans pro-reform news outlet Shargh Daily.
Shargh reported that the attorney filed a complaint citing Salehi's mistreatment in detention, alleging that authorities were neglecting to provide adequate medical care for his broken leg.
The Supreme Court also considered the general amnesty order announced by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February when granting the appeal for Salehi's case.
Recently, Salehi made a video where he recounted his harsh treatment while in prison. "I endured a lot of torture during my detention," Salehi stated in the video, which was shared on social media. He explained that he was frequently hit in the head and face, and stated that he had sustained broken fingers while trying to shield himself from the blows.
"It's difficult to discuss, but it persisted for an extended period," he stated.
According to the Iranian judiciary news agency Mizan, Salehi was arrested on Thursday for publicly making false claims on social media without providing evidence, as well as for spreading lies and disrupting public opinion.
Sources close to Salehi told CNN the rapper had recently started treatment and therapy for the injuries he sustained while in prison and was scheduled to undergo surgery in the coming days.
