Iranian rapper sentenced to death for 'writing protest slogans on walls'

Iranian rapper Mahnam Navab Safavi, 22, was sentenced to death by a Revolutionary Court in Isfahan for writing protest slogans on walls, charged with 'waging war against God.' His lawyers were denied access to his case file, and the trial was held in absentia. Musicians have been frequently targeted in Iran, with other artists receiving flogging sentences for performing without hijab.

Iranian rapper Mahnam Navab Safavi, 22, was sentenced to death last week by a Revolutionary Court in Isfahan, according to human rights organizations and diaspora media. The charges include 'waging war against God through participation in the destruction of public property,' which the court defined as writing protest slogans on walls, as well as 'propaganda against the establishment' and 'assembly and collusion.' His two lawyers were refused access to his case file and denied any opportunity to defend him; the trial was held in absentia while Safavi remains in detention at Isfahan Central Prison. In December, his social media declared he would join protests. The article notes that musicians are frequently targeted in Iran, citing rapper Toomaj Salehi, whose death sentence was overturned after a song about Mahsa Amini, and female singers sentenced to flogging for performing without hijab.

Iranian rapper sentenced to death for 'writing protest slogans on walls'