Supporters of the protest movement
Iranian rapper released on bail
November 19, 2023, 11:12 a.m
Toomaj Salehi was imprisoned for months because he took part in demonstrations against the regime in Iran. In the meantime, the rapper is facing the death penalty. Now he is allowed to leave prison – but that is not yet “real freedom”.
Iranian authorities have released a popular rapper from prison where he has been held for more than a year for his support of nationwide anti-government protests. Toomaj Salehi was released on bail following a decision by the Supreme Court, the newspaper “Shargh” quoted the musician’s lawyer, Amir Raisan, as saying. The court found “errors in the original ruling,” Raisan said. The rapper can therefore hope for a pardon.
A picture that was published overnight on Salehi’s user account on the online service Instagram shows the 32-year-old outside the prison with a bouquet of white flowers. Salehi was arrested in October 2022 after publicly supporting the demonstrations following the death of the young Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini.
In July, the rapper was sentenced to six years in prison for “corruption on earth.” The charge describes one of the most serious crimes in Iran and is punishable by the death penalty. Specifically, the musician was accused of spreading “lies on the internet” and “propaganda against the state” and of inciting people to violence.
Hundreds of protesters were killed
The 22-year-old Amini died in September 2022 after her arrest by the Iranian moral police because of a headscarf that was allegedly worn too loosely. According to her family, she died after being mistreated by the moral police. The Iranian authorities reject this. Her death sparked an unprecedented protest movement under the slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom.” The security forces cracked down on the protests. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands arrested.
Bundestag member Ye-One Rhie, who supports Salehi as part of a political sponsorship, said she was very happy about the release. At the same time, she warned: “Freedom on bail is not real freedom, not freedom without conditions.” Iran must drop all allegations against Salehi.
The rapper spent ten months of his captivity in solitary confinement. He was tortured and his injuries were not treated medically. “In addition, his release must not ensure that we forget all the other innocently imprisoned people in Iran,” said the SPD politician. “It is not a day to celebrate, but to remember all those who were captured and killed for no reason.”