Toomaj Salehi, 32, is a well-known rapper in Tehran and was arrested in October 2022 by Iranian security forces, with outlets affiliated to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) at the time describing him as “one of the leaders of the riots” and saying he was caught “while trying to flee in the western border region.”
Earlier this year, he was sentenced to six years behind bars on charges of “corruption on earth,” which carries a maximum penalty of death.
“Due to the many objections raised in the original document, some objections were accepted by the Supreme Court of the country and … the court considered Toomaj Salehi like other people who were granted amnesty and announced he can also use the amnesty,” Salehi’s lawyer Amir Raisian told Iran’s reformist Shargh Daily newspaper.
“He was released from Isfahan prison today,” Raisian added.
Amini, 22, died in police custody on September 16, 2022 after being arrested for allegedly wearing a lax hijab. Her death sparked Iran’s largest protest movement in the past four decades, initially calling for greater freedoms for women before turning into a full-scale antigovernment revolution. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands arrested as authorities initiated a brutal crackdown on dissent.
The Islamic republic became the subject of heavy international criticism and sanctioning for its repression of the demonstrators.
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