Latest news with #MehdiYarrahi
New York Times
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
He Sang in Praise of Women Exposing Their Hair. Iran Flogged Him.
A popular Iranian musician who was arrested two years ago during a crackdown on artists and academics has been punished with 74 lashes in what activists said on Thursday was a bid to humiliate him for supporting a nationwide uprising. The musician, Mehdi Yarrahi, 43, was subjected to the flogging by officers of the Morality Security Prosecutor's Office in Tehran on Wednesday, his lawyer Zahra Minuei said on social media. The punishment, which Iran's Revolutionary Court had sentenced him to, brought an end to a yearslong criminal case. 'He who is not willing to pay the price for freedom does not deserve freedom,' Mr. Yarrahi said in a post on his official X account on Wednesday. He thanked his legal team and said, 'Wishing for liberation.' Mostafa Nili, another lawyer representing Mr. Yarrahi, said on Thursday that his client was unable to sit or lean on his back because of the punishment. The United Nations' International Bill of Human Rights strictly prohibits flogging, calling it inhumane and degrading. The extreme punishment comes as Iran's artist community celebrates two Iranian directors who on Sunday won an Oscar for an animated short that had been nominated by Iran. On social media, some Iranians pointed out in outrage that while outside the country Iranian artists were being honored with accolades, inside they faced abusive treatment by the government. Mr. Yarrahi was arrested in a wave of detentions that aimed to quell any protests marking the anniversary of a 2022 uprising in which protests led by young people, particularly women, rocked Iran's religiously conservative establishment. Those protests erupted after 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody after being arrested on accusations of violating Iran's mandatory hijab rule. The 2022 demonstrations swelled to nearly six months of nationwide uprising, with protesters demanding the end of the Islamic cleric's rule. They ended with brutal crackdowns that resulted in the killing of more than 500 people, the arrest of tens of thousands more and the executions of several protesters. Mr. Yarrahi was one of many artists who added their voices to the women-led uprising. In the months before the first anniversary of the protests, he released 'Roosarito,' a song praising Iranian women who rejected the hijab rule and exposed their hair as an act of civil disobedience. 'Take off your scarf, let your hair flow,' he sang in a video that featured a woman dancing, her uncovered hair swaying. Mr. Yarrahi, who made his music in secret and released it only online to avoid censorship, faced instant punishment. The police rounded him up along with dozens of students, academics, journalists and artists. At the time, the judiciary said Mr. Yarrahi had released an 'illegal song' that defied the 'morals and norms of an Islamic society.' Iran's state news media reported that during the raid on Mr. Yarrahi's home, the security forces had found alcohol, violating a law that bans the consumption and possession of alcohol. He was initially sentenced to two years and eight months in prison, the singer said in a video published on social media last week. But his sentence was commuted to one year as he experienced 'poor physical health,' he said, and was then later commuted to house arrest with 74 lashes. For that year, Mr. Yarrahi was confined to his home and wore an electronic ankle cuff, he said. 'I have spent that one year, and it is finished now,' he added. Now free, Mr. Yarrahi has vowed not to return to the stage, as an act of solidarity with Iranian women. 'After all these years of being banned from work, I understand better the suffering of the Iranian women,' he said in the video. Mr. Nili said on social media on Thursday that he 'was behind the door and could hear the sound of the lashes.' 'I could hear him shouting, 'Thank you, God!' after each lash,' Mr. Nili said. Iran's artist community and some famous musicians, inside and outside the country, have rallied behind Mr. Yarrahi, sharing his picture on social media and praising him as a hero of the people. In the wake of the unrest, many Iranian musicians and artists endured persistent harassment from the security police or were barred from performing, said Mehdi Kouhian, a lawyer who is a member of the Committee for Advocacy for Prosecuted Artists, which was formed during the antigovernment demonstrations. Others fled the country, the targets of government forces and hard-line groups, he added. The lashes given to Mr. Yarrahi were an effort to humiliate the musician 'among his fans or religious strata of Iranian society,' Mr. Kouhian said. At least 12 of the protesters who were arrested during the crackdown have been sentenced to death or to lengthy prison terms, according to Amnesty International.
The Independent
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Iranian singer Mehdi Yarrahi given 74 lashes over protest song urging hijab removal
Mehdi Yarrahi, an Iranian musician known for protest songs that call out his country's strict dress codes for women, was given 74 lashes as part of a punishment. His lawyer, Zahra Minuei, confirmed in a post on X that the punishment had been carried out at Branch Four of the Moral Security Prosecutor's Office in Tehran, marking the end of a criminal case against Yarrahi. 'The flogging sentence has been carried out,' she wrote, according to an online translation. Yarrahi, 42, was arrested in August 2023 and then sentenced by the Tehran Revolutionary Court to two years and eight months in prison in addition to 74 lashes. He ended up serving a year of his sentence and served out the rest of his term in house arrest with an ankle monitor after posting bail. 'We wanted to lift the bail, but they said it was conditional on the flogging sentence being carried out,' Ms Minuei said. At the time, Yarrahi had written on X: 'I am ready to receive the sentence of 74 lashes, and while I condemn this inhuman torture, I make no request to cancel it.' Yarrahi was accused of 'releasing an illegal song that is against the morals and customs of Islamic society ' following the release of his song 'Your Headscarf (Roo Sarito)' in September 2023. The song was released on the first anniversary of the 'Women, Life, Freedom' uprising, which began after the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for allegedly violating Iran 's mandatory headscarf law. 'Take off your scarf, the sun is sinking/Take off your scarf, your pleasant perfume fills the air/Take off your scarf, let your hair flow/Don't be afraid, my love! Laugh, protest against tears,' the lyrics go, according to a translation by After news of his flogging broke, Yarrahi posted a message on his social media, thanking his lawyers and writing: 'You brought glass to break our stone…Whoever is not willing to pay the price for freedom is not worthy of it.' Under Iranian law, based on Tehran's interpretation of Sharia, women and girls who have reached puberty must cover their heads with scarves and bodies with long, loose-fitting clothing. The rules were made even stricter last year after Iran's parliament passed a new 'hijab and chastity' law that would increase the prison sentence to 10 years and a fine for dressing "inappropriately" in public places. Iranian human rights activist and Nobel peace prize laureate Narges Mohammadi condemned the flogging in a statement, writing: 'The execution of Mehdi Yarrahi's flogging sentence is retaliation for his support of the women of Iran. The lashes on Mehdi's body are a whip against the proud and resilient women of Iran and the thriving, powerful spirit of the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' movement. 'On the eve of 8 March, by rejecting the 'gender privilege' in singing, Mehdi Yarrahi once again stood alongside protesting, justice-seeking women and the people in pursuit of their demands. 'May we, as women, protest the regime's brutality against a dissenting artist, strengthening the chain of solidarity and putting an end to the misogynistic religious tyranny. Mehdi Yarrahi stood against the suppression of women's voices – let us be his voice.' Actor Taraneh Alidoosti, who spent almost three weeks in jail over her support for the 2022 protests, posted in support of Yarrahi on Instagram, writing: 'Shame on backwardness, shame on torture, shame on violence, shame on anti-human laws, and shame and disgrace on our helplessness', according to an online translation. Last year in October, 23-year-old Roya Heshmati, a vocal critic of the country's controversial hijab laws, was whipped 74 times by the police for 'violating public morals' by sharing a picture in which her head was not covered. In May 2024, renowned director Mohammad Rasoulof was sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging, a fine, and the confiscation of property after the court found his films and documentaries, along with his public statements, to be 'examples of collusion with the intention of committing a crime against the security of the country'.
Egypt Independent
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Egypt Independent
Iranian singer flogged 74 times after singing about hijab removal, lawyer says
CNN — Mehdi Yarrahi, an Iranian singer and musician known for his song encouraging women to remove their hijabs, was lashed 74 times as part of his punishment for supporting the protests that swept the country, his lawyer said Wednesday. The punishment was 'fully and completely implemented,' his attorney, Zahra Minoui, said in a post on X. Yarrahi, 42, was arrested in August 2023 and sentenced by the Tehran Revolutionary Court to two years and eight months in prison, as well as 74 floggings. He eventually served one year of his sentence and was fined, alongside the lashing. Yarrahi had been accused of 'releasing an illegal song that is against the morals and customs of Islamic society,' the state news agency IRNA said in 2023. Flogging is a form of beating that involves a whip or rod and is commonly administered to the person's back. He was detained four days after releasing his famous song 'Roosarito' – Farsi for 'your headscarf' – where lyrics included the lines: 'Take off your scarf, the sun is sinking. Take off your scarf, let your hair flow.' 'Don't be afraid, my love! Laugh, protest against tears,' the lyrics add. A month after Yarrahi's arrest, protests erupted throughout Iran to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old woman who died in the custody of Iran's morality police after being arrested for allegedly not wearing her headscarf properly. Rights groups have been outraged over the hijab law and the cruel ways it is enforced. In December, Amnesty International said that Iranian authorities had imposed new draconian laws against veil-wearing, including threats of 'imposing the death penalty, flogging, prison terms and other severe penalties to crush ongoing resistance to compulsory veiling.' Other artists in Iran have received floggings as part of their sentences, including acclaimed movie director Mohammad Rasoulof, who in May of last year was sentenced to eight years in prison and flogging for national security crimes, his lawyer said. In 2015, two Iranian poets faced 99 lashes each for shaking hands with people of the opposite sex. They were also both sentenced to years in prison for 'insulting the sacred' in their writings, a decision slammed by freedom of expression activists.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Yahoo
Iranian musician flogged 74 times over protest song in support of women's rights
March 6 (UPI) -- Iranian musician Mehdi Yarrahi received 74 lashes as part of his sentence a song supporing women's rights and opposes the Middle Eastern country's draconian hijab laws, his lawyer said. Yarrahi, a singer-songwriter known for his protest music, was arrested in late August 2023 and sentenced to two years and eight months in prison, with one year enforceable, along with a fine and 74 lashes. In December, Yarrahi was released after completing his one-year sentence. On Wednesday, he received the remaining 74 lashes, his lawyer, Zahra Minuei, confirmed in a Farsi-language statement. "Today ... the last part of the sentence ... was fully and completely implemented," Minuei said. "Mr. [Yarrahi's] case was closed." According to Iran activist-run Human Rights News Agency, Yarrahi was arrested on charges of spreading propaganda against the regime, encouraging corruption and depravity and producing and distributing immoral content, among others, following the release of his song, "Roo Sarito," which translates to "Your Headscarf" in English. The Tehran regime deemed the song "unlawful" and "contrary to the values and norms of Islamic society, HRANA reported following Yarrahi's arrest, citing Mizan, the news agency of Iran's judiciary. His arrest came ahead of the one-year anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who died in police custody after being detained for violating Iran's hijab laws and beatedn. Amini's death sparked mass women-led protests, which Yarrahi supported. "You brought glass to break our stone," Yarrahi said in a statement published to his X account on Wednesday thanking Minuei and others who had supported him. "Whoever is not willing to pay the price for freedom is not worthy of it. Wishing for liberation..." Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi described Yarrahi's flogging as retaliation for his support of Iranian women. "May we, as women, protest the regime's brutality against a dissenting artist, strengthening the chain of solidarity and putting an end to the misogynistic religious tyranny," she said on X. "Mehdi Yarrahi stood against the suppression of women's voices -- let us be his voice."
CNN
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Iranian singer flogged 74 times after singing about hijab removal, lawyer says
Mehdi Yarrahi, an Iranian singer and musician known for his song encouraging women to remove their hijabs, was lashed 74 times as part of his punishment for supporting the protests that swept the country, his lawyer said Wednesday. The punishment was 'fully and completely implemented,' his attorney, Zahra Minoui, said in a post on X. Yarrahi, 42, was arrested in August 2023 and sentenced by the Tehran Revolutionary Court to two years and eight months in prison, as well as 74 floggings. He eventually served one year of his sentence and was fined, alongside the lashing. Yarrahi had been accused of 'releasing an illegal song that is against the morals and customs of Islamic society,' the state news agency IRNA said in 2023. Flogging is a form of beating that involves a whip or rod and is commonly administered to the person's back. He was detained four days after releasing his famous song 'Roosarito' – Farsi for 'your headscarf' – where lyrics included the lines: 'Take off your scarf, the sun is sinking. Take off your scarf, let your hair flow.' 'Don't be afraid, my love! Laugh, protest against tears,' the lyrics add. A month after Yarrahi's arrest, protests erupted throughout Iran to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old woman who died in the custody of Iran's morality police after being arrested for allegedly not wearing her headscarf properly. Rights groups have been outraged over the hijab law and the cruel ways it is enforced. In December, Amnesty International said that Iranian authorities had imposed new draconian laws against veil-wearing, including threats of 'imposing the death penalty, flogging, prison terms and other severe penalties to crush ongoing resistance to compulsory veiling.' Other artists in Iran have received floggings as part of their sentences, including acclaimed movie director Mohammad Rasoulof, who in May of last year was sentenced to eight years in prison and flogging for national security crimes, his lawyer said. In 2015, two Iranian poets faced 99 lashes each for shaking hands with people of the opposite sex. They were also both sentenced to years in prison for 'insulting the sacred' in their writings, a decision slammed by freedom of expression activists.
