Iranian University Student Jailed For Disseminating Propaganda Against The Regime After Speaking Out Against Death Penalty

A university student in Iran has been jailed for disseminating “propaganda against the regime” after she spoke out against the death penalty, which is still used as a punishment for various crimes in the country.

Hasti Amiri, age not reported, a student at Allameh Tabataba’i University in the Iranian capital Tehran, was sentenced to one year in prison after she took to Twitter to say that she was opposed to the death penalty in her country.

Her lawyer, who has been named as Amir Raesian, recently took to Twitter to announce that his client had been sentenced to a year in prison for “propaganda against the regime”.

Hasti Amiri, a student at Allameh Tabatabaei University in Tehran, Iran, who was sentenced to one year in prison for opposing the death penalty. (@Hastiamiri9/Newsflash)

Amiri, speaking about the ruling, said on Twitter (in Farsi): “Not only do I have to go to prison for a year, I also have to endure the university as a prison for two years!

“This means that I do not have the right to attend any student communities except for compulsory classes.

“Also, according to the ruling, my mobile phone will be confiscated as a tool used to commit a crime, and I have no right to participate in any virtual or non-virtual gatherings.”

The tweet of the student Hasti Amiri from Tehran, Iran, saying: ‘Not only do I have to go to prison for a year, but I also have to endure the university as a prison for two years’. (@Hastiamiri9/Newsflash)

The statement was also corroborated by her lawyer on Twitter.

And Amiri added that “security agents” showed up at her father’s house about two months ago with a warrant for her arrest.

The United Nations has slammed Iran as one of the worst offenders for the death penalty in the world, with a very poor human rights record. The country also occasionally executes minors.

The tweet from Amir Raesian, the lawyer of Hasti Amiri from Tehran, Iran, for the decision for prison. (@amirreiis/Newsflash)

Other countries listed by the UN that execute minors include China, the United States, DR Congo, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Sudan, and Yemen.

It is currently unclear if Amiri can appeal the sentence.