Iranian writer and activist Hossein Shanbehzadeh has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after responding to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with a period on X.
For years, Shanbehzadeh has criticized Iran’s leadership, according to NPR. In fact, he even went to prison in 2019 for online comments about Khamenei, speaking out against the mandatory headscarves for women and other political issues.
However, this time around, he’s being punished for doing next to nothing.
“The Islamic Republic’s security forces on Tuesday arrested Iranian blogger, writer, and proofreader Hossein Shanbehzadeh who, last month, posted a single dot in reply to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s tweet, and that comment was liked far more than Khamenei’s original tweet,” Iran International English posted on X. He got about twice as many likes.
When Shanbehzadeh was arrested in June of this year, he told his family he didn’t know what he did wrong. However, he recognized it followed his—albeit underwhelming—activity on X. Apparently, posting just a dot was enough for him to end up in jail.
According to Iran International English, his sentence includes five years in jail for “pro-Israel propaganda activity,” four years for “insulting Islamic sanctities,” two years for “spreading falsehoods” on social media, and one year for “anti-regime propaganda activity.” He is only required to serve the time of the longest sentence—so the actual jail term will be five years.
Shanbehzadeh is just one of the countless activists who have received harsh retribution for their words and actions. In an attempt to control the disapproving messages from artists and public figures, the Iranian government has become relentless with its prison sentences. In fact, one individual, an Iranian rapper named Toomaj Salehi, even received the death sentence for creating anti-government videos.
According to NPR, “Shanbehzadeh was sentenced to five years for alleged pro-Israel propaganda activity, four years for insulting Islamic sanctities, two years for spreading lies online, and an additional year for anti-regime propaganda.”
Shanbehzadeh’s lawyer, Amir Raisian, told an Iranian reformist newspaper that he plans to appeal the verdict.
The post Iranian Writer Gets 12-Year Sentence For Ratioing the Supreme Leader on X appeared first on VICE.
The post Iranian Writer Gets 12-Year Sentence For Ratioing the Supreme Leader on X appeared first on VICE.
