Singer, artists sentenced to 74 lashes each

PARIS, France (AFP) — An Iranian court sentenced a prominent singer named Parastoo Ahmadi and a group of seven fellow artists to 74 lashes each after they livestreamed a performance on YouTube, according to her videographer and local media.

The concert featured Ahmadi singing powerful, mournful songs to an empty audience, on a dimly-lit stage adorned solely with a large Persian carpet in the grounds of a traditional caravanserai complex.

Ahmadi was backed by a pianist, drummer, guitarist and bassist.

All the musicians wore black, with Ahmadi dressed in a long, strappy gown and wearing deep red lipstick, in a country where women are banned from singing in public. 

They are also required to dress modestly and wear the headscarf.

Ahmadi livestreamed the concert on her own channel in December 2024, where it has been viewed three million times. It has also been viewed many thousands of times more on other channels.

"Two years banned from artistic activities, banned from leaving the country, and 74 lashes for all of us," wrote videographer Tahmineh Monzavi in a post on Instagram on Thursday.