Iranian dissident rapper Toomaj Salehi's death sentence overturned

Dubai, June 22

Iran’s Supreme Court overturned the death sentence of a government critic and a popular hip-hop artist, Toomaj Salehi — who came to fame over his lyrics about the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini in 2022 — his lawyer Amir Raisian said Saturday.

In a post on social media platform X, Raisian said that the court assessed the case and found Salehi’s past six years in prison as “excessive” since the punishment was more than what was allowed by law. He added that another branch of the court will now review the case.

Salehi’s death sentence in April by a Revolutionary Court in the central city of Isfahan created confusion as even Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency and the judiciary did not formally confirm it. Such courts in Iran often involve closed-door hearings with evidence produced secretary and give limited rights to those on trial.

The news quickly drew international criticism from the United States and United Nations.

Salehi was released from prison last November after spending a year there on charges that his supporters said were based on the hip-hop artist’s music and participation in the protests that broke out in Iran over the death of Amini, 22.

Amini died in the custody of the country’s morality police after being detained for wearing her hijab too loosely. — AP