Iranian court upholds 74 lashes for singer Parastoo Ahmadi over unveiled concert

Pinned summary · as of 17:00

An Iranian appeals court has rejected the challenge by singer Parastoo Ahmadi against a sentence of 74 lashes, leaving the punishment in place. She was convicted over a concert streamed on YouTube in December 2024 in which she performed without the compulsory headscarf.

What we know

• Parastoo Ahmadi, aged 29, will still face 74 lashes, because a higher court turned down her legal team's challenge to the sentence.
• The case stems from a concert streamed online in December 2024, in which she appeared without the mandatory hijab and which drew millions of views on YouTube.
• A court in Qom found Ms Ahmadi guilty in June, together with members of her band and production crew, of harming public decency by publishing material it judged indecent.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  Graphic Online reported, citing her lawyers, that the higher court threw out the challenge on Friday with no hearing. A lawyer told the BBC that in their view staging the concert was no crime whatsoever, and that the ruling seemed chiefly aimed at discouraging similar events. Yen.com.gh did not report these points.
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  Yen.com.gh reported that Ms Ahmadi personally faces a two-year bar from leaving Iran and from any artistic work, and that appeals court branch head Abbas Gharabaghi said the defendants' submissions fell short of what was needed to overturn the sentence. Graphic Online did not report either detail.
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  Yen.com.gh said the date and place for carrying out the flogging are not yet known. Graphic Online did not address the timing.
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  Graphic Online said she wore a sleeveless dress for the livestream, while Yen.com.gh said the concert had no live audience, she sang solo and it passed three million views; the exact viewing figure and details of the performance come from one report each.
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  Graphic Online reported that the exiled singer Googoosh wrote on Instagram of her hope that women in Iran would again be free to decide their own lifestyle and clothing, that musician Hossein Alizadeh offered to take 70 lashes in Ms Ahmadi's place, and that Amnesty International called flogging cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.
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  Yen.com.gh reported that the Abdorrahman Boroumand Centre condemned flogging as degrading and violent, and that the lawyers' group Dadban questioned whether criminal charges should apply to artistic work.

Why it matters for Ghana

The case shows how far freedom of expression for women performers is restricted in Iran, a subject followed by Ghanaian readers with an interest in music, rights and world affairs. Musicians and rights groups abroad have reacted, which matters to artists and audiences in Ghana who value creative freedom. The ruling also shows how Iranian courts treat online performances.