An Iranian accounting student, Najmeh Amini, 23, has reportedly been sentenced to death for blasphemy after allegedly insulting the Prophet in a social media post, according to reports citing Iranian human rights activists. Her case has drawn attention to the legal penalties she faces and her reported appeal for international scrutiny.
Amini was sentenced last month after spending eight months in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, according to the account published by the Mail Online. She had previously faced charges that reportedly included insulting Iran’s Supreme Leader and clashing with security agents.
Iranian human rights activists have since reported that the death sentence was imposed on the charge of “sab ol-nabi”, a term referring to insulting the Prophet. Amini was also reportedly sentenced to 12 years, six months and one day in prison on charges of acting against national security and spreading anti-government propaganda.
The charges followed Amini’s arrest on January 31, when she was reportedly detained after taking part in protests against Iran’s government. The original report said she joined hundreds of thousands of other Iranians who took to the streets. The specific circumstances of her arrest, the evidence presented against her and the details of the court proceedings were not provided in the account.
A leaked audio recording reportedly made inside prison has added to concern over Amini’s situation. In the recording, dated September 18, 2026, she introduces herself and appeals to the public to help bring attention to her case.
” I am not trying to make a hero out of myself today; I only ask one thing: be my voice,” she says in the recording, according to the transcript published in the original report.
Amini describes herself as an innocent young woman with hopes for the future and says her family fears losing her. She also expresses concern that her case could be forgotten if her voice does not reach people outside the prison.
“I do not want the last remaining trace of me to be a few lines in a case file,” she says.
In the recording, Amini asks lawyers, legal experts, human rights activists and international organisations to examine her case. She also appeals to the United Nations and other responsible bodies to investigate her situation and help ensure that she has an opportunity to defend herself.
“People, I only want justice and the opportunity to defend myself,” she says.
Her death sentence was reported by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights and Iran Human Rights, which have raised concerns about the case. According to Iran Human Rights, the death sentence remains subject to appeal and has not been upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court. The exact legal status of the sentence is therefore important in assessing what could happen next.
The case has also drawn attention to Iran’s use of capital punishment for blasphemy. Under Iranian law, insulting the Prophet Muhammad can carry the death penalty. Iran Human Rights has warned that Amini’s case raises concerns about the use of the death penalty in response to expression on social media.
Amini’s appeal from prison centres on a request for her case to be reviewed and for her right to defend herself to be respected. “Remember my name; I may not be able to speak again,” she says in the recording, before expressing her hope of seeing a free Iran.
The allegations against her, the death sentence and the additional prison term have been reported by human rights organisations, but the full court record and the social media post at the centre of the blasphemy charge have not been made publicly available in the reports cited here.
