Woman, 23, sentenced to death in Iran over ‘blasphemy’ post, rights groups say
Oslo-based Iran Human Rights says more than 600 executions have already been carried out in Iran in 2026.
Najmeh Amini, a 23-year-old woman held in Vakilabad prison in the Iranian city of Mashhad, has been sentenced to death for blasphemy over a social media post, according to human rights groups cited by the Guardian on 14 October.
The sentence is not final and remains subject to appeal before Iran’s supreme court.
A source close to Amini’s family told the US-based Human Rights Activists in Iran that the charge was “sab ol-nabi”, which means insulting the prophet.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), the group’s news agency, reported on 20 September that Amini said in an audio message circulated on social media that the judiciary issued a death sentence against Amini on 16 September. HRANA said it was unable to independently verify Amini’s statements.
HRANA said a hearing was held in August at the Mashhad Revolutionary Court, where Amini was tried on charges of “assembly and collusion against national security” and “insulting sacred beliefs and the Imams”. HRANA’s report did not say which charge the death sentence was for.
Amini, an accounting student, was arrested by security forces at Ferdowsi Shopping Center in Mashhad on 31 January, during the January protests, HRANA said.
In a second case, Amini was sentenced to 12 years, six months and one day on charges including acting against national security and spreading propaganda against the regime. The two cases were heard by a revolutionary court and a criminal court.
According to the Iranian newspaper Khorasan, which confirmed the judicial proceedings, Amini’s defence argued it was a “slip of the tongue”. The two reports behind this story do not say what the post contained.
The presiding judge rejected that defence, reportedly asking: “Why, in that same hallucinatory state, did you not insult other individuals or opponents of the regime, such as America and Israel?”
Under article 262 of Iran’s Islamic penal code, insulting the prophet Muhammad or revered Shia figures is punishable by death. Article 263 provides exemptions for statements made while intoxicated or without deliberate intent, although offenders may still face up to 74 lashes in certain circumstances.
Death sentences for blasphemy remain relatively rare in Iran. The last documented case came on 8 May 2023, when Yousef Mehrad and Sadrollah Fazeli-Zare were executed after being convicted of blasphemy-related offences tied to social-media activity.
Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, said the case should be seen as a serious warning. “Sentencing a young woman to death for what she posted on social media risks normalising the use of the death penalty against peaceful expression and pushing the boundaries of the death penalty even further,” Amiry-Moghaddam said.
