Iranian singer Parastoo Ahmadi and eight members of her production team, including musicians, have reportedly been sentenced to 74 lashes for performing in a concert livestreamed on her YouTube channel in December 2024. The patriotic song Az Khoone Javanane Vatan (From the Blood of the Youth of the Homeland) was performed without a hijab and has garnered millions of views.
Court Ruling and Charges
According to court documents from Qom province, the artists face flogging, a two-year ban on leaving the country, and a two-year ban on artistic activities. Charges include offending public decency through the production and publication of “vulgar and immoral content” online. The official judiciary news agency has not yet published the ruling, but rights groups and lawyers confirm the documents' authenticity.
Broader Repression
Bahar Ghandehari, director of advocacy at the Center for Human Rights in Iran, stated: “Ahmadi’s punishment of 74 lashes for merely singing and appearing without a hijab is yet another reminder that human rights conditions in Iran have not changed, despite the Iranian authorities’ wartime propaganda campaign aimed at improving their image.” She emphasized the gap between official imagery and the prosecution of artists.
Human rights lawyer Moein Khazaeli of Dadban argued the sentence lacks legal basis: “Singing, performing music and producing or disseminating musical works by women are not criminalised under Iranian criminal law. Consequently, such activities cannot reasonably be construed as the ‘production, distribution or publication of obscene content’.” He added that flogging raises concerns about international obligations to prohibit torture.
Reactions from Artists
Iranian-British actor Nazanin Boniadi said: “The sentencing of singer Parastoo Ahmadi to flogging for the simple act of singing publicly without a hijab is a stark reminder that, despite talk in Washington of a ‘new regime’ in Iran, the Islamic republic’s machinery of repression remains unchanged.”
Setareh Maleki, an Iranian actor exiled after starring in The Seed of the Sacred Fig, told the Guardian: “When I watched the video of Parastoo Ahmadi’s concert, it reignited the spirit of resistance in me. … Iranian women never stop fighting against tyranny, not even for a moment, and that is truly remarkable.”
For Iranian artists, the ruling deepens fears of escalating cultural repression, yet many continue to resist through their art.
