Iranian Rapper Demands Judicial Sentence Amid Torture Allegations

Saman Yasin (Seydi), an Iranian rapper arbitrarily imprisoned for 18 months, has demanded his judicial sentence in a letter addressed to the head of the Judiciary.

In his letter from Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj, published on Instagram, he wrote, "For 18 months, I have been imprisoned without any evidence or documentation, and during this time, court sessions have been scheduled for me numerous times but have not been held."

Arrested during the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom uprising, Yasin was originally sentenced to death before the Supreme Court overturned the ruling.

In the letter, Yasin disclosed enduring "mental, emotional, and physical problems" in prison, exacerbated by authorities' refusal to provide medical assistance. His plight is part of a larger pattern among political prisoners, who have spoken out against torture tactics, including the administration of unidentified pills and injections.

Previously, Yasin was subjected to further torture when detained in a mental hospital on the orders of a judge. Punished for smuggling an audio file from prison, Yasin described experiences of being tied to a bed and physically assaulted by security forces.

He said his tormentors sought a false confession regarding possession and use of firearms during the prior year's protests.