Iranian rapper and regime critic Toomaj Salehi could face the death penalty after being charged with “corruption on earth.”
A judiciary official has confirmed the charge to state-affiliated media, but denied claims from rights groups that his trial had started.
Salehi is also charged with spreading propaganda against the regime, an accusation commonly levelled against critics of the government, the official said on Sunday.
He is one of several high-profile Iranians to be arrested over their support for the continuing protests.
The rapper was a popular face of the demonstrations. His arrest in October led to widespread outrage from the largely young crowd who have defied the crackdown launched by security forces since anti-government protests began more than two months ago.
These were sparked by the death of Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, 22, in morality police custody in September. She had been detained in Tehran for wearing her hijab “improperly”.
Rights groups have said Salehi's first hearing has been held and his lawyer was barred from attending.
Before his arrest, the rapper had released several videos of him protesting and supporting others taking to the streets.
In one song, he referred to the “crime” of “hair flowing in the wind” — a reference to Iran's strict dress code which mandates the headscarf for women.
Salehi's family has told media outlets he has been tortured and had not been granted a fair legal process, which is a common occurrence for regime critics.
His uncle, Eghbal Eghbali, said 50 people raided the rapper's home at the time of his arrest. Photos showing Salehi blindfolded in the back of a car circulated widely after his arrest.
He is being held near the central city of Isfahan and has said he has been tortured, Mr Eghbali told CNN.
State-run IRNA agency said the hip-hop artist “promoted violence and conflict with armed forces” on Twitter during the protests.
It recently aired footage of Salehi, blindfolded, in a seemingly forced apology for taking part in demonstrations.
“Corruption on earth” is a charge often handed to critics of the regime and is punishable by death.
Iran is one of the world's biggest executioners.
Amnesty International has said Tehran is seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in “sham trials”, and urged countries with diplomatic relations with Tehran to send high-level observers to the court proceedings.
On Monday, the judiciary also said one of the country's top footballers remains in detention, after being held for his criticism of the government.
Voria Ghafouri, who chose not to go to the World Cup, was arrested for spreading propaganda against the state and “tarnishing the reputation” of the national team.
The Iran team initially refused to sing the national anthem in their opening match, against England, in Qatar. For their second game, against Wales, some players did.
Families of the players have said they have been threatened with imprisonment and torture if players “do not behave” in Tuesday's match against the US.
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
Torque: 1600Nm
Price: Dh13,400,000
On sale: now
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
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Brief scores:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
THREE
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Nayla%20Al%20Khaja%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Jefferson%20Hall%2C%20Faten%20Ahmed%2C%20Noura%20Alabed%2C%20Saud%20Alzarooni%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite food: Fish and seafood
Favourite hobby: Socialising with friends
Favourite quote: You only get out what you put in!
Favourite country to visit: Italy
Favourite film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Family: We all have one!
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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1.
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Bayern Munich 2 Borussia Monchengladbach 1
Bayern: Zirkzee (26'), Goretzka (86')
Gladbach: Pavard (37' og)
Man of the Match: Breel Embolo (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 2
Keita 5', Firmino 26'
Porto 0
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
