'WON'T BACK DOWN'
Family of ‘Lion of Iran’ rapper, 33, sentenced to death for standing up to regime say he’ll ‘stand strong till the end’
Salehi's family and friends accused Iran of trying to silence the 'voice of the voiceless'
THE devastated family of an Iranian rapper sentenced to death for using his music to criticise the regime said he will " stand strong until the end".
Toomaj Salehi, 33, was arrested in 2022 in the midst of a powerful uprising triggered by the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.
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Salehi bravely used his music to challenge the leadership of Iran, railing against the state's corruption and crackdowns on dissent.
His anti-regime songs were used as a backdrop to the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests that broke out across Iran after Amini was beaten to death for wearing an "improper" hijab on on September, 2022.
Earlier this week, his lawyer announced that he had been sentenced to death.
Salehi's fans refer to him as the son of Iran, the lion of Iran
Negin Niknaam, a close friend
Salehi's cousin Azadeh Babadi has now spoken out, praising Salehi's strength.
"In a situation like this he thinks of us, his family and his fans instead of being worried for himself," she told ITV News.
In terms of what her cousin be thinking, Babadi said: "I think he would say it's okay. I know what I stand for, and I'm prepared to face whatever consequences come my way.
"Don't worry about me. I'll stand strong until the very end."
Babadi added that the whole family had "no hope" in the Iranian regime but begged people around the world to mount pressure on the state.
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Negin Niknaam, a close friend of Salehi, said his death sentence was "baseless" and accused the regime of trying to silence him.
"Toomaj has always been the voice of the voiceless in Iran through his music. His fans refer to him as the son of Iran, the lion of Iran."
Iranian protestors chant 'death to the dictator' after brutal executions by Tehran's morality police
Salehi was arrested in October 2022 and charged with “spreading corruption on earth" and "waging war against God" - offences that carry a death sentence.
He had released anti-government music and urged his followers to join in the demonstrations that have continued on despite brutal repression, mass arrests and hundreds of deaths.
Following his arrest, evidence emerged that the rapper was being held in solitary confinement and tortured.
The UN officials reported his nose and fingers had been broken and his legs had been smashed up.
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In July 2023, Salehi was sentenced to six years and three months in prison by a court in the city of Isfahan.
In November, he was released on bail after Iran's Supreme Court said there were flaws in the original sentencing that qualified him for amnesty.
However, he was arrested again two weeks later and his charges were later escalated.
During a trial in March, Salehi fought back against the accusations and his family said there was "no legal and justified citation" for the charges.
This week, the Isfahan court announced he would be hanged.
Salehi's lawyer Amir Raisian called it an "unprecedented move" as it ignored the Supreme Court's ruling.
The court accused Salehi of "assistance in sedition, assembly and collusion, propaganda against the system and calling for riots", he added.
The court only gave Saheli's representatives 20 days to appeal. "We will definitely appeal this verdict," Raisan said.
Iranian officials have not yet confirmed the sentence.
In response to the death sentence, his fans are rallying around the world - under the hashtag of #saveToomaj - to call for his release.
In Iran, Salehi's music is being played as a form of protest.
The office of the US Envoy to Iran strongly rebuked the death sentence.
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In a statement, it said: “We strongly condemn Toomaj Salehi’s death sentence... We call for their immediate release.
“These are the latest examples of the regime’s brutal abuse of its own citizens, disregard for human rights, and fear of the democratic change the Iranian people seek.”
Inside Iran's 'morality police'
THE brutal death of Mahsa Amini on September 16, 2022 at the hands of Iran's twisted morality police sparked almost two years of brave protests that called for the end of the brutal force.
Amini 22, was beaten to death by the morality police after she was arrested in the capital iof Tehran for 'violating' the country's strict hijab laws.
She was allegedly detained for having some hair visible under her headscarf - which Iranian women are legally required to wear.
Under Iranian law, which is based on the country's interpretation of Sharia, women must cover their hair with a hijab and wear long, loose-fitting clothing.
The morality police - also know as the Guidance Patrol - are in charge of arresting women who violate the conservative dress code.
Women detained by cops are either given a warning or bundled into a van and whisked away to a "correctional facility" or a police station where they are lectured on how to dress before being released to their male relatives.
Since the 1980s, many women have been beaten to death by the callous morality police, or tortured into given false confessions.
The morality police units are often made up of the Basij - a paramilitary force initially set up to fight in the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.
Back in 1979, the leader of the revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, decided hijabs would be compulsory for all women in their workplaces and considered uncovered women to be "naked".
Although there were widespread protests, women and girls were legally required to wear modest "Islamic" clothing by 1981.
In 1983, lawmakers decided that women who didn't cover their hair in public could be punished with 74 lashes.
For the last 40 years, thousands of women have suffered at the hands of the morality police who operate with near impunity.
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