Breathing in Confinement

Mehdi Yarahi was sentenced to imprisonment as well as lashes

11-January-2024

Category: Labor and guilds، Prisoners، protesters

 

January 10, 2024.
Breathing in Confinement: Mehdi Yarahi has been sentenced to two years and eight months of imprisonment and the endurance of 74 lashes by the Tehran Revolutionary Court

According to “Breathing in Confinement,” the news organ of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, Mehdi Yarahi was condemned to imprisonment and lashes by Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari.

Zahra Minoui, Mr. Yarahi’s defence lawyer, stated upon releasing this news: “Based on the verdict issued by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Iman Afshari, my client has been sentenced to a total of two years and eight months of disciplinary imprisonment as well as 74 lashes. If this verdict is confirmed in the Appeal Court, the harsher punishment, meaning one year of imprisonment, will be enforceable.”

On Tuesday, October 16, 2023, the court session addressing the charges against Mehdi Yarahi, the singer and composer, was held in this branch. Mr. Yarahi defended himself against accusations of propagandizing against the system, encouraging people to promiscuity, producing and disseminating morally inappropriate content, and urging and inciting people to commit crimes against chastity through online platforms.

Mehdi Yarahi was detained on August 28, 2023, following the release of the song titled “Your Scarf ( Rusarito),” and was released on bail from Evin Prison in mid-October. Earlier also, he had been “banned from transactions” by the Tehran Public Prosecutor’s Office due to his support for the nationwide protests in 2022.