Toomaj Saleh: Supreme Court overturns death sentence against rapper

The verdict against an imprisoned Iranian rapper who was sentenced to death for supporting anti-government protests has been overturned by the Supreme Court on appeal, his lawyer said.

Toomaj Salehi was arrested in October 2022 after publicly expressing his support for the protests that broke out across Iran.

His lawyer, Amir Raesian, said the Supreme Court had now ordered a retrial. The judges had ruled that Salehi’s previous prison sentence of six years and three months violated Iran’s multiple conviction laws and exceeded the statutory penalty.

Salehi, 22, was initially sentenced to prison in July 2023 after a Supreme Court ruling spared him the death penalty.

But the following January, the Revolutionary Court in the city of Isfahan charged him with new offenses.

In April, he was sentenced to death for the capital crime of “corruption on earth.”

The musician was also found guilty of a number of other crimes, including aiding and abetting sedition, inciting insurrection, collusion and propaganda against the state.

Salehi became notorious in his songs and lyrics for his outspoken criticism of the Iranian leadership and its corruption, as well as its harsh crackdown on dissidents.

He had expressed his support for the 2022 protests sparked by the death of young Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in police custody.

Amini, 22, was visiting Tehran with her family when she was arrested by religious police for allegedly wearing an “inappropriate” hijab.

The crackdown on the protests resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people and the arrest of thousands more.

Before the nationwide unrest, Salehi was already an established artist and known as an outspoken personality, posting his songs on social media because he was banned from performing in concerts.