Case Summary and Outcome

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) found that the detention of Iranian artist and activist Toomaj Salehi was arbitrary and violated international human rights standards. Mr. Salehi was arrested and prosecuted for his music and public statements that supported protests and criticized government actions. His detention stemmed directly from the peaceful exercise of his right to freedom of expression, including artistic and political expressions online. The Working Group found that Mr. Salehi was denied basic legal safeguards, such as timely access to a lawyer, being informed of the charges against him, and appearing promptly before a judge. The legal provisions used to prosecute him were vague and overly broad, failing to meet international standards regarding clarity and legality. The conditions of his detention, including alleged torture, incommunicado detention, and the denial of a fair trial, were deemed serious violations. The UNWGAD emphasized that prosecuting individuals for non-violent expressions—including artistic and political speech—undermines core human rights protections. The Working Group concluded that Mr. Salehi’s detention fell under multiple categories of arbitrariness, including violations of due process and discrimination based on political opinion, and called for his immediate release and reparations.

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Facts

Toomaj Salehi, an Iranian national born on 3 December 1990, is a prominent hip-hop artist and human rights activist known for his outspoken criticism of the Iranian government. He commands a large online following, including 2.6 million followers on Instagram and 750,000 on X (formerly Twitter). Mr. Salehi has used his platform to promote democracy, social justice, and human rights, particularly through his music. In September 2022, in the wake of nationwide protests sparked by the death in custody of Jina Mahsa Amini, Mr. Salehi released a protest song titled Divination, which focused on women’s rights and became widely popular among demonstrators. Around the same time, he gave a televised interview to a foreign news outlet expressing support for the protests and calling for accountability.

On 30 October 2022, shortly after the release of the song and the interview, Mr. Salehi was violently arrested by 12 agents from the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence in the Chaharmahal va Bakhtiari Province. He was reportedly beaten, blindfolded, and transferred to the Isfahan Central Prison. Simultaneously, approximately 50 agents raided his home. His arrest was carried out without a warrant and without providing any explanation or legal basis. He was held in solitary confinement, denied access to legal counsel or communication with his family, and subjected to physical and psychological abuse. According to credible reports, his leg and arm were broken, his ribs fractured, his eyes severely injured, and he was injected with adrenaline to prevent him from losing consciousness during further acts of torture. He remained incommunicado for 38 days and was only permitted to access a lawyer after 60 days in detention.

On 27 November 2022, the Chief Justice of the Isfahan Province confirmed to the media that Mr. Salehi had been charged with multiple offences, including: “corruption on Earth” (Article 286 of the Islamic Penal Code), which carries the death penalty; “spreading propaganda against the State” (Article 500); “collaboration with a hostile Government” (Article 508); “inciting people to commit murder and rioting”; “disseminating false information”; “establishing an illegal group to disrupt national security” (Article 498); “insulting the leadership”; and “enmity against God” (Article 279).

The charges were based primarily on his songs, social media activity, and public statements. His trial was held in secret between 18 June and 3 July 2023 before Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Isfahan. His lawyer had only 30 minutes to consult with him before the trial began and was only granted partial access to the case files. The presiding judge had reportedly been sanctioned by several foreign governments for past involvement in human rights violations.

On 10 July 2023, Mr. Salehi was convicted of all charges and sentenced to six years and three months in prison. The court also cancelled his passport, imposed a two-year travel ban, and prohibited him from producing music or art. His legal team appealed the ruling. On 18 November 2023, Branch 39 of the Supreme Court overturned the conviction, citing procedural irregularities and affirming that no more than three charges may be imposed in a single case. Mr. Salehi was released on bail that same day, after spending 384 days in detention, including 252 in solitary confinement.

Following his release, Mr. Salehi posted a video online on 27 November 2023 describing the torture he endured during detention and disavowing a previously released confession video, which he claimed had been fabricated. Three days later, on 30 November 2023, he was arrested again in Babol by armed plainclothes agents, who allegedly beat him, causing serious injuries to his face and eyes. He was held incommunicado in an undisclosed location until 2 December 2023, when he was transferred to the Isfahan Central Prison. He was permitted to contact his family and lawyer on 4 December 2023. His lawyer’s access to case files remained limited, with three of four volumes still inaccessible, and most communications took place through prison officials rather than directly with Mr. Salehi.

On 1 January 2024, Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Isfahan reconvicted Mr. Salehi on three charges—“spreading propaganda against the State,” “disseminating false information,” and “inciting people to commit acts of violence”—in connection with the song Divination and his social media posts. He was sentenced to one year in prison, had his passport cancelled for two more years, and was ordered to attend a behaviour management course. Neither Mr. Salehi nor his lawyer were informed of the hearing, and both were absent during trial.

On 21 January 2024, Mr. Salehi faced two additional charges before the same court: “armed and group rebellion against the system” and “conspiracy to commit security-related offences,” based on his video testimony from November 2023. At that point, he was facing ten charges in total.

Although the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal on 14 February 2024, he was later acquitted on 18 March 2024 by the Criminal Court of the Isfahan Province of charges related to the video, including “disseminating false information” and “inciting acts of violence.” However, on 18 April 2024, Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court reasserted its jurisdiction. Five days later, on 23 April 2024, it sentenced Mr. Salehi to death on charges including “participation in rebellion against the State,” “assembly and collusion against national security,” and “spreading propaganda and incitement to violence”—charges which were again grouped under the broadly defined offence of “corruption on Earth.” The court declared the Supreme Court’s earlier decision to be merely advisory. Following this sentencing, officials confiscated Mr. Salehi’s mobile phone and suspended family visitation rights.

On 22 June 2024, the Supreme Court overturned the death sentence, declaring it unlawful and excessive, and remanded the matter to Branch 5 of the Revolutionary Court of Isfahan for re-evaluation. On 10 July 2024, while awaiting a verdict, Mr. Salehi was subjected to a two-hour interrogation, during which he was informed of two new criminal cases against him. These included four additional charges: “spreading propaganda against the State and incitement to murder and violence,” and “insulting sacred values and spreading falsehoods.” The first set of charges was referred to the Revolutionary Court, while the second was referred to Criminal Court No. II. These latest charges were reportedly based on content published on Mr. Salehi’s personal website and a song titled Typhus, which had been released while he remained in custody.

Although the Revolutionary Court had previously ordered Mr. Salehi’s release on bail following the Supreme Court’s ruling, the new charges became the grounds for his continued pre-trial detention. Throughout the entire sequence of arrests, trials, and appeals, the charges brought against Mr. Salehi have relied on broad and often vague provisions of the Islamic Penal Code, including Articles 279, 286, 498, 500, and 508.

The allegations and prosecutions against Mr. Salehi have consistently targeted his music, social media activity, and public commentary—all of which constitute protected forms of expression under Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Iran is a State party. His case has involved extensive procedural irregularities, denial of due process rights, and serious concerns regarding the use of torture, incommunicado detention, and the retaliatory application of vague national security laws in response to peaceful artistic and political expressions. The case was submitted to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) by a source acting on behalf of Toomaj Salehi.

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Decision Overview

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention delivered its opinion (No. 53/2024) in the matter of Toomaj Salehi v. Islamic Republic of Iran, following its 101st session held in November 2024. The case concerned the repeated arrest and detention of Mr. Salehi, a well-known hip-hop artist and outspoken critic of the Iranian government, whose music and online activism focused on women’s rights, government accountability, and broader human rights issues. The Working Group found that his detention was arbitrary under all four relevant categories: I (lack of legal basis), II (exercise of rights protected under international law), III (denial of the right to a fair trial), and IV (discrimination based on political opinion). The main issue before the Working Group was whether the detention of Mr. Salehi stemmed from his legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression—through music, social media posts, and interviews—and whether the Iranian authorities complied with international legal standards in the conduct of his arrest, detention, and prosecution.

The source alleged that Mr. Salehi was targeted for his music and activism, particularly for his support of protests following the death in custody of Jina Mahsa Amini. His songs, such as “Divination,” and later “Typhus,” became symbols of protest. He was arrested without a warrant, held incommunicado, subjected to torture, and charged under vague and overbroad provisions of the Islamic Penal Code, including “corruption on Earth” and “spreading propaganda against the State.”

The Government of Iran submitted a reply outside the permissible timeline and failed to substantially refute the allegations.

To issue its decision, the Working Group relied on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Iran is a State party—particularly articles 9 (liberty and security of person), 14 (fair trial), 19 (freedom of expression), and 26 (non-discrimination)—, as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The analysis also drew upon the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment and the Nelson Mandela Rules. [paras. 3, 25–26, 60, 93–94, 106]

Category I: Lack of Legal Basis for Detention

The UNWGAD found that Mr. Salehi’s arrests, in both 2022 and 2023, were carried out without an arrest warrant, without informing him of the reasons for his arrest, and without bringing him promptly before a judge: “In the absence of any information to the contrary, the Working Group finds that Mr. Salehi was arrested without a warrant and that no reasons for his detention were given by the detaining authority.” [para. 78]

The Working Group also noted that he was held in incommunicado detention—amounting to enforced disappearance—for 38 days after his first arrest and for at least three days after his second arrest. This violated, said the UNWGAD, his right to be recognized as a person before the law, and left him without the ability to challenge the legality of his detention.

Category II: Exercise of Protected Freedoms

According to the UNWGAD, Mr. Salehi’s detention was directly linked to his public expressions—through music, social media, and interviews—calling for human rights, criticizing state violence, and urging citizens to protest. Following this, the Working Group stressed that artistic expression is specifically protected under article 19(2) of the ICCPR, and that charges such as “spreading propaganda against the State,” “insulting sacred values,” or “corruption on Earth” were too vague to meet the requirement of legal precision. Upon assessing the proportionality of the measures imposed on Salehi, the UNWGAD reiterated that restrictions must be narrowly tailored and necessary to achieve a legitimate aim. No such justification was provided by the Government.

In addition to citing prior Working Group opinions involving Iranian artists and activists, [1] the UNWGAD referenced the 2024 report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, which highlighted escalating restrictions on artists and dissidents.

The Working Group concluded that Mr. Salehi’s detention was arbitrary under Category II because it directly resulted from his peaceful exercise of the right to freedom of expression. Citing Article 19 of both the ICCPR and the UDHR, the UNWGAD held that the charges brought against him were impermissibly vague, disproportionate, and aimed at silencing dissent, thus amounting to a clear violation of international human rights law.

Category III: Denial of Fair Trial Rights

The Working Group identified multiple violations of Mr. Salehi’s due process rights, including the denial of access to legal counsel, lack of adequate time to prepare a defense, secretive and unfair hearings, and reliance on confessions extracted under torture.

As noted by the UNWGAD, Mr. Salehi’s lawyer only had 30 minutes to speak with him before trial, and court proceedings were frequently held without notice. The presiding judge had been sanctioned by multiple governments for prior human rights violations, further undermining the fairness of the proceedings. In light of this, “[t]he Working Group conclude[d] that Mr. Salehi was not tried by an independent and impartial tribunal.” [para. 96]

His prolonged solitary confinement and documented physical torture were also considered to violate articles 7 and 10 of the ICCPR. The Working Group highlighted that evidence obtained through coercion violates the Covenant and may also breach the Convention Against Torture.

Category IV: Discrimination Based on Political Opinion

Mr. Salehi’s treatment, the UNWGAD opined, was consistent with a broader pattern of state targeting of artists, dissidents, and human rights defenders in Iran. The Working Group underscored the systemic discrimination faced by individuals critical of the government, as outlined in numerous UN reports and past UNWGAD opinions: “The Working Group observes a clear, discriminatory pattern of attitude displayed by the Iranian authorities towards Mr. Salehi on the basis of his political opinion and of him acting as an artist expressing opposing views.” [para. 103]

It concluded that his repeated detentions were rooted in discrimination based on his political beliefs and artistic expressions, constituting a violation of Article 26 of the ICCPR.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that the detention of  Toomaj Salehi was arbitrary and unlawful under international law. It called for his immediate and unconditional release, the provision of compensation and reparations, and a full, independent investigation into the circumstances of his arrest, torture, and prosecution.

The opinion also urged for systemic reform, expressing concern that Mr. Salehi’s case is just a part of a broader pattern of arbitrary detentions in the country and warning that such widespread violations could amount to crimes against humanity.

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[1] A/HRC/55/62, para. 28; Opinions No. 20/2022, No. 46/2022, No. 54/2022, No. 82/2022 and No. 21/2023.

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