Iranian authorities have deprived rapper Toomaj Salehi, sentenced to death after supporting protests, of his right to make telephone calls from jail, his social media accounts run by supporters said on Tuesday. Salehi, 33, who performs under the name Toomaj, was last week sentenced to death in a verdict seen by activists as retaliation for his music backing nationwide protests that erupted in 2022. The rapper, a prominent figure for youth in Iran even before his arrest, was convicted on the sharia charge of “corruption on Earth” by a Revolutionary Court.

His lawyers plan to appeal the verdict while he remains jailed in Dastgerd prison outside the central city of Isfahan. “Toomaj’s phone privileges at Isfahan’s Dastgerd prison were cut off. This means he has zero contact with his family and the outside world,” said the artist’s official account on X, formerly Twitter, which has been run by an administrator since his incarceration. “Furthermore, in a move meant to inflict maximum psychological pressure on him, all prisoners at Dastgerd have been forbidden from speaking to him, and have been threatened with severe punishment if they do,” it added.

“This is a gross violation of Toomaj’s human rights, and must immediately stop.” German MP Ye-One Rhie, who is following Toomaj’s case, wrote on X: “To be clear: That’s torture.” Protests were held across the world at the weekend in cities including in Toronto, Paris and Sydney, urging Iran to spare the rapper’s life and release him.

Toomaj was arrested while in hiding in October 2022 during the peak of the protest movement sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old arrested by Iran’s morality police for an alleged breach of strict dress rules for women. Activists accused Iran of torturing him during his arrest after state media published a video purporting to show the rapper blindfolded, with bruising on his face, apologizing for his support of the protests. — AFP