Iranian Elderly Woman Who Protested Brother’s Execution Sent to Prison

An elderly Iranian woman who was prosecuted for speaking out against the extrajudicial execution of her brother in 1983 has been arrested to begin serving a five-year prison sentence.

Raheleh Rahamipour, 72, was forced to surrender to the authorities on November 18 despite being physically unfit for imprisonment.

The Tehran Revolutionary Court sentenced Rahamipour to six years and two months in prison in 2022, but the sentence was later reduced to five years on appeal. 

She was charged with "propaganda activities against the system" and "gathering and collusion against national security."

The elderly woman was released on bail pending trial.

Rahamipour’s imprisonment is a further example of the Islamic Republic’s crackdown on dissent and of its persecution of Iranians who seek justice for those who have been killed by the state.