Iran Student Death Sentence for Blasphemy Post: Cases and Appeal
Najmeh Amini, a 23-year-old accounting student, has been sentenced to death in Iran for blasphemy over a social-media post. She is held in Vakilabad prison in Mashhad in north-east Iran. The Guardian
The death sentence was imposed in one of two separate cases. A revolutionary court — which handles security charges — and a criminal court heard the cases in parallel. In the second case, she received 12 years, six months and one day on charges including acting against national security and spreading propaganda against the regime. The Guardian
Amini was arrested by security forces during the nationwide protests that began in Iran in January. The arrest took place in Mashhad on 3 February 2026 and followed monitoring by FATA Cyber Police experts, according to Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO). Iran Human Rights
The capital charge was "sab ol-nabi" (insulting the prophet). Under Article 262 of Iran's Islamic penal code, insulting the Prophet Muhammad or revered Shia figures is punishable by death. Article 263 provides exemptions for statements made while intoxicated or without deliberate intent, though offenders may still face up to 74 lashes. The Guardian
The case was tried by Branch 6 of the Khorasan Razavi Province Criminal Court One, presided over by Judge Javad Asian-Yazd. Khorasan Newspaper confirmed the case on 7 October using her initials. IHRNGO published its report on the death sentence on 9 October 2026. Iran Human Rights
Amini told the court she posted the remarks while hallucinating after taking psychedelic mushrooms with friends. Her defence lawyer attributed the social media statements to a slip of the tongue. The trial court rejected both defences of slip of the tongue and intoxication-induced lack of intent. Iran Human Rights
The sentence is not final. It remains subject to appeal before Iran's supreme court. The Guardian
From prison, Amini released an audio recording appealing for international intervention and calling on the UN, lawyers and rights groups to investigate her case. In an audio message from Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, she said "Be my voice". Iran International
IHRNGO, whose director is Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, reports that more than 600 executions have been carried out in Iran this year. Two men were executed in Iran in 2023 on blasphemy charges. Amiry-Moghaddam demanded that Amini's death sentence be overturned and called for an immediate moratorium on all executions. Iran Human Rights
The broader context here is how blasphemy, security and protest-related charges interact in the Iranian judiciary. The dual-track prosecution, with a revolutionary court handling national security counts and a criminal court handling the religious offence, is a structure familiar to lawyers who work on Iranian capital cases. Like two tracks running side by side, it allows separate evidentiary standards and separate appeals to run at the same time. For diplomats and monitors, the operative window is now the supreme court review of the death sentence.
In my view, three points deserve close attention. First, the court's rejection of intoxication and lack of intent will be central to any appeal, because Article 263 explicitly contemplates that defence. Second, the FATA Cyber Police role points to continued surveillance of protest-linked social media activity months after street demonstrations. Third, the scale of executions this year shapes how international bodies will read a single blasphemy death sentence, not as an isolated prosecution but as part of a wider use of capital punishment that rights groups are asking states and UN mechanisms to address.
