Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi released from prison months after court overturned death sentence

nme.com:

months after the court overturned his death sentence.The rapper was arrested in October 2022 after backing demonstrations that broke out in the wake of the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, which occurred under suspicious circumstances while in police custody.Toomaj Salehi was also known for using his songs to criticise Iran’s leaders for their crackdowns on protests.

He was sentenced to death in April on the capital offence of “corruption on earth” after making statements in support of anti-government protests in 2022.Now, in an Instagram post shared earlier today (December 2), Salehi announced on social media that he has been freed from prison. “Salehi, son of Iran, was released from Dastgerd Prison today, after suffering 753 days of cruel, unjust, and unjustified re-imprisonment without any reason or documented legal support,” its translated caption reads.Advocacy group Index on Censorship, which had been working with the rapper’s family to overturn the sentence, shared the news on X/Twitter, calling Soomaj “a brave and brilliant person who should never have been imprisoned to begin with”.

A full statement by the group will be released tomorrow (December 3).A post shared by Toomaj Salehi | توماج صالحی (@toomajofficial)We welcome the news that Iranian rapper #ToomajSalehi has been released from prison.

Toomaj is a brave and brilliant person who should never have been imprisoned to begin with. We’ve been proud to support him since his arrest: https://t.co/ns58AAVXbz @OfficialToomaj— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) December 1, 2024Salehi’s death sentence sparked outcry from human rights organisations and high-profile figures around the world.More than 100 figures from the world of culture and entertainment signed.