Iranian musician Toomaj Salehi facing capital punishment for activism
Renowned musician Toomaj Salehi is facing a death penalty for his active participation in the nationwide demonstrations that shook Iran in 2022, as confirmed by his legal representative.
Toomaj Salehi, a rapper known for his dissenting views, has been sentenced to death for his participation in the protests that took place in Iran in 2022, as confirmed by his lawyer.
On Wednesday, Salehi's lawyer, Amir Raesian, announced on Twitter that a death sentence has been handed down for Toomaj Salehi.
The rapper was arrested and put in solitary confinement, where he was reportedly mistreated. In a surprising turn of events, a court in Isfahan overturned the Supreme Court's ruling on Saleh's case. They upheld the original decision of "corruption on earth" and sentenced him to death, as reported by Iranian pro-reform media outlets Shargh and Entekhab.
State media mentioned that Salehi's sentence could be reduced by a pardoning committee if he decides to appeal again.
Salehi, aged 32, has been openly criticizing the Iranian government in his rap lyrics and on social media. Last year, he was briefly released from prison but was violently rearrested by the police and sent back to prison in Isfahan, according to witnesses.
He was arrested again after he appeared in a video, sharing that he had been tortured and kept alone in a cell for 252 days after being arrested in October 2022, according to UN experts as stated by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
Toomaj/Youtube
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Iranian dissident rapper Toomaj Salehi was recently rearrested, less than two weeks after being released from prison. Another artist, Kurdish-Iranian rapper Saman Yasin, who was arrested during the 2022 protests in Iran, was taken to a psychiatric hospital twice in less than a year, as reported by pro-reform news outlet IranWire.
Yasin was given a five-year prison sentence by a court in Tehran, as reported by Hengaw, a group dedicated to Kurdish human rights.
Following the suspicious death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in police custody, protests erupted across the country. Iranian authorities responded with a harsh crackdown on the weeks-long demonstrations.
The United States' Office of the Special Envoy for Iran condemned Toomaj Salehi's death sentence and the five-year sentence for Kurdish-Iranian rapper Saman Yasin. They called for their immediate release, citing these cases as examples of the regime's brutal abuse of its own citizens, disregard for human rights, and fear of democratic change sought by the Iranian people.
UN experts joined in demanding Salehi's release and urged Iranian authorities to reverse the death sentence.
The experts expressed their concern over the death sentence imposed on Mr. Salehi and the reported ill-treatment. They believe this is linked to his right to artistic expression and creativity.
German Member of Parliament Ye-One Rhie, who is Salehi's political sponsor in Europe, described the death sentence as "absurd and inhumane."
"It is baffling how this verdict was reached," she posted on Twitter on Wednesday. "The Iranian regime's treatment of defendants is shockingly irresponsible and arbitrary. The chaos in the courts makes it impossible to see any semblance of justice."
Reporting contributed by CNN's Mostafa Salem.
Editor's P/S:
The news of Toomaj Salehi's death sentence has sent shockwaves through the international community. This harsh punishment for a
