- Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei
- Head of the Iranian Judiciary
- President of the Islamic Republic of Iran
- United Nations Human Rights Council
- United Nations Secretary General
- European Union Human Rights Commission
- European Union Commission President
- President of Finland
- Prime Minister of Finland
- Foreign Minister of Finland
- U.S. Department of State
- Prime Minister of Canada
- Prime Minister of Australia
- Amnesty International
- Human Rights Watch
Finn Right International Human Rights Commission, based in Pori, Finland, issues this urgent and formal appeal to the highest authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran to immediately halt the execution of Najmeh Amini, commute her death sentence without condition or delay, and give the most serious humanitarian consideration to her immediate release.
Najmeh Amini is a 23-year-old accounting student from Mashhad, Iran. She has been sentenced to death for blasphemy arising from a social media post. She has been held in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad since her violent arrest on January 31, 2026 — more than eight months ago. She has been denied a fair trial. She has been denied due process. And she now faces execution for words she posted online.
Finn Right International states without equivocation: no human being should be sentenced to death for an act of expression. We urge the Iranian authorities to act with justice, humanity, and full respect for their binding obligations under international human rights law.
II. Case Background: Who Is Najmeh Amini?
Najmeh Amini is a young Iranian woman studying accounting. She is twenty-three years old. Before her arrest, she was a student — one of millions of young Iranians seeking an education and a future.
On January 31, 2026, Najmeh Amini was violently arrested by Iranian state security forces near Ferdowsi Bazaar in Mashhad during nationwide anti-government protests. Prior to her physical detention, her online activities had been actively tracked and monitored by Iran’s Cyber Police, known as FATA, as part of a coordinated state surveillance operation targeting protest participants.
She was subjected to severe physical beatings at the time of her arrest. She was then held in detention for eight months without a fair legal process.
The Charges and the Sentences
The Death Sentence for Blasphemy
On September 16, 2026, the Criminal Court One of Khorasan Razavi Province, presided over by Judge Javad Asian-Yazd, sentenced Najmeh Amini to death on charges of blasphemy specifically, the charge of insulting the Prophet Muhammad through a social media post.
The court initially accused her of insulting the Twelve Infallible Imams before escalating the charge to full blasphemy, which carries a mandatory death sentence under the Iranian Islamic Penal Code.
In a deeply troubling audio recording released from prison one that has since been heard by human rights organizations around the world — Najmeh Amini stated that the remarks in question were made while she was hallucinating after consuming psychedelic mushrooms. Her defense lawyer argued that the remarks constituted a slip of the tongue made in a state of severe disorientation.
The court dismissed these explanations without meaningful consideration.
In a separate development during her trial proceedings, the presiding judge reportedly asked her why she had not directed her remarks toward opponents of Iran such as the United States or Israel while under the influence a question that reveals the deeply political nature of the proceedings against her.
The Additional Prison Sentence
In a separate trial, Najmeh Amini was sentenced to twelve years and six months in prison on charges of acting against national security and spreading propaganda against the Iranian regime.
This dual sentencing death for alleged blasphemy, and more than twelve years’ imprisonment for alleged political activity represents the comprehensive legal destruction of a young woman’s life for her participation in protest activity and for words she posted on the internet.
Current Legal Status
The death sentence issued against Najmeh Amini is not yet final. It remains subject to appellate review and must be confirmed or overturned by the Supreme Court of Iran before it can be carried out.
This appellate window represents the last meaningful opportunity for Iranian judicial authorities to correct a profound miscarriage of justice. Finn Right International urgently calls upon the Supreme Court of Iran to overturn this sentence without delay.
Violations of International Human Rights Law
The arrest, detention, trial, and sentencing of Najmeh Amini constitute grave and multiple violations of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s binding obligations under international human rights law.
The Right to Freedom of Expression
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Iran is a state party both guarantee freedom of expression as a fundamental and non-derogable human right. The imposition of a death sentence for words posted on social media constitutes a categorical violation of this right, regardless of the content of those words.
No act of expression however offensive to any religious or political authority can justify the taking of a human life. This is not a matter of opinion. It is a binding principle of international law.
The Right to a Fair Trial
Najmeh Amini was held in arbitrary detention for eight months before the conclusion of her trial. She was subjected to physical violence at the point of arrest. Credible reports indicate that the proceedings against her failed to meet the minimum standards of a fair trial guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The right to a fair trial including the right to legal representation, the right to adequate time to prepare a defense, the right to be presumed innocent, and the right to appeal — is not a privilege. It is a legal right that Iran is obligated to uphold for every person within its jurisdiction.
The Prohibition of Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Punishment
The United Nations Human Rights Committee has consistently held that the imposition of the death penalty for offenses that do not involve the intentional taking of life is incompatible with the binding requirements of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The death penalty for blasphemy a charge arising from words posted online — falls entirely and unambiguously within this prohibition.
4.4 The Systematic Use of the Death Penalty as a Political Weapon
Iran has carried out more than 600 executions in 2026 alone. The case of Najmeh Amini does not exist in isolation. It is part of a documented and deliberate pattern in which the Iranian state weaponizes its judicial system and the ultimate punishment of death to silence dissent, intimidate protesters, and suppress the voices of young Iranians who dare to speak out.
The Center for Human Rights in Iran has explicitly warned that without a strong and immediate international response, the death sentence against Najmeh Amini risks establishing a precedent for the expanded use of capital punishment against peaceful online expression in Iran.
Finn Right International’s Demands
Finn Right International Human Rights Commission formally, urgently, and without reservation issues the following demands:
To the Supreme Leader, the Head of the Judiciary, and the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran:
- Immediately halt any and all steps toward the execution of Najmeh Amini.
- Commute her death sentence without condition and without delay.
- Order her immediate release on humanitarian grounds, taking full account of the circumstances of her arrest, the conditions of her detention, and the grave procedural failures that characterized her trial.
- Drop all charges against her arising from her participation in protests and from her social media activity.
To the Supreme Court of Iran:
- Overturn the death sentence issued by the Criminal Court of Khorasan Razavi Province at the earliest possible opportunity.
- Ensure that any continued proceedings against Najmeh Amini fully comply with Iran’s domestic legal obligations and its binding international human rights commitments.
To the United Nations Human Rights Council and the International Community:
- Issue an immediate and public condemnation of the death sentence imposed on Najmeh Amini.
- Apply sustained diplomatic pressure on the Iranian government to commute her sentence and release her unconditionally.
- Demand a moratorium on all executions in Iran, particularly those arising from protest-related activity and charges of blasphemy or national security offenses.
- Establish independent monitoring of Iran’s compliance with its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Conclusion
Najmeh Amini is twenty-three years old. She is a student. She posted words on social media. For this, the Islamic Republic of Iran has sentenced her to death.
This is not justice. It is the weaponization of law against a young woman whose only offense was to express herself in a moment of personal disorientation, in a country where the cost of expression can be one’s life.
Finn Right International will not remain silent in the face of this sentence. We stand unconditionally with Najmeh Amini, with her family, and with every young Iranian who has been imprisoned, tortured, or sentenced to death for daring to speak, to protest, or to simply exist as a free human being.
The death sentence against Najmeh Amini must be overturned. She must be released. And the international community must ensure that the Iranian state understands with full clarity and without ambiguity that the execution of a twenty-three-year-old student for a social media post will not be tolerated, forgotten, or forgiven.
Her voice will not be silenced. Finn Right International will be her voice.
Iran's systematic use of death penalty against women and protestersHammad Kahlun President Finn Right International Human Rights Commission Pori, Finland finnright.com info@finnright.com