Iranian woman (23) sentenced to death over a social media post: the judge asked her why she hadn't insulted the US and Israel

Najmeh Amini is 23, a student, and is being held in Vakilabad prison in Mashhad. Iran's judiciary has sentenced her to death over a social media post that the authorities declared an insult to the Prophet Muhammad. The verdict is not final and can be appealed to the Supreme Court.

That's not all. In separate proceedings, Amini also received 12 years, six months and one day in prison for acting against national security and propaganda against the regime. Even the single day has been calculated - Iran's judiciary is precise when it measures out other people's freedom.

She was arrested during the protests in January. Last month she sent an audio message from prison to the international community: "I don't want to play the heroine. I want just one thing: be my voice." The appeal was addressed to the United Nations, lawyers and human rights organisations - to investigate her case.

The defence the court threw out

According to the Iranian press, Amini told the court she wrote the post after taking hallucinogenic mushrooms with friends. Her lawyer argued it was a slip. The judge dismissed the defence with a question that says more about the court than about the defendant: why, in that state, hadn't she insulted other people, or enemies of the regime, such as the US and Israel?

Translation: the court isn't asking whether the defendant was aware of what she was writing, but whom she insulted. Iranian law does provide for the death penalty for insulting the Prophet, but such sentences are rare. The last known executions for blasphemy date from 2023, when two men convicted over social media activity were executed.

The context makes the verdict darker still. The organisation Iran Human Rights reports that more than 600 people have been executed in Iran this year alone, and rights defenders warn of increasingly frequent use of the death penalty. A death sentence for a student arrested at a protest is seen as an attempt by the regime to intimidate protesters and silence their voices.

When those in power alone decide what counts as an insult, every post is potential evidence - and that's not just Tehran's problem. The question now is whether "be my voice" will reach someone who can do something before the Supreme Court has the final word.