What We Know About Iran's Lashes Sentence for Singer Parastoo Ahmadi

An appeals court in Iran has confirmed a sentence of 74 lashes against singer Parastoo Ahmadi for performing without the mandatory hijab, lawyers for the defendants told the BBC. The ruling, issued Friday, rejected the 29-year-old's appeal without a hearing, closing off the primary avenue she had to challenge the punishment inside Iran's court system.

The case traces back to a livestreamed concert in December 2024, when Ahmadi sang in a sleeveless dress on her YouTube channel. Iranian law bars public performances by women and requires headscarves and modest dress for women in public. The video drew millions of views, according to the BBC, prompting Iran's judiciary to open proceedings against Ahmadi, describing the performance as "in violation of the country's legal and cultural regulations."

What did the appeals court decide?

A higher court upheld the trial verdict from a criminal court in Qom, which in June convicted Ahmadi and eight members of her band and production team of "offending public decency" through the publication of "obscene and indecent material," the BBC reported, citing the defendants' lawyers. The appeals court had the option to hold a hearing before ruling but declined to do so. One of the lawyers told the BBC the court's decision to skip a hearing suggested the goal was "to deter the recurrence of similar events" rather than to weigh the specifics of the case.

What happened at the December 2024 concert?

Ahmadi performed live on her YouTube channel without a hijab, an act that on its own conflicts with Iranian law governing women in public. The performance also violated a separate legal bar on public concerts by women. The livestream circulated widely online before Iranian authorities moved against Ahmadi and the people who worked with her.

Who else was punished alongside Ahmadi?

Eight members of Ahmadi's band and production team were convicted alongside her, the BBC reported. All nine defendants received the same core penalties: a sentence of 74 lashes, a two-year ban on audiovisual work, and a two-year ban on leaving Iran. The appeals court's rejection applies to the group as a whole, according to the lawyers who spoke to the BBC.

The case by the numbers

• 74 — number of lashes in the sentence upheld against Ahmadi and her eight bandmates and crew members.
• 9 — total defendants convicted in the case, including Ahmadi.
• 2 years — length of the bans on audiovisual work and foreign travel imposed on all nine.
• December 2024 — month the livestreamed concert took place.
• 74 — lashes also given to Kurdish-Iranian activist Roya Heshmati in January 2024 over a social-media photo showing her without a hijab, according to Kurdish rights group Hengaw, as cited by the BBC.

How does this compare to past hijab-law punishments?

Ahmadi's sentence echoes the case of Roya Heshmati, who was flogged 74 times after being convicted of "violating public morals" over a photo posted online. Heshmati told Hengaw that a female officer forced a headscarf onto her before a male officer struck her shoulders, back, hips and legs, the BBC reported. Iranian law, based on the state's interpretation of Sharia, requires women and girls past puberty to cover their hair and wear loose clothing in public. Enforcement has drawn sustained resistance since the September 2022 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old detained by morality police for allegedly wearing her hijab improperly, an event that triggered nationwide protests in which women burned or waved headscarves.

What are lawyers and rights groups saying?

One of Ahmadi's lawyers told the BBC, "In our view, holding the concert was not a crime at all," adding that the trial court "imposed one of the harshest punishments for these charges, although fines and less severe penalties were also available." Exiled singer Googoosh wrote on Instagram after the original sentence that she hoped "women regain the freedom to choose how they live and dress" and that "artistic expression once again flourish[es]" in Iran. Musician Hossein Alizadeh said he was "willing to take 70 lashes in Parastoo Ahmadi's place." Amnesty International said flogging "constitutes cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment, and violates the absolute prohibition on torture and other ill treatment," according to the BBC. Iran's judiciary has not publicly detailed further legal options open to the defendants following the appeals court's rejection.