Iran court sentences singer and musicians to lashes, travel ban over uncovered concert

An Iranian court has sentenced a female singer and eight musicians to 74 lashes each, along with two-year bans on foreign travel and musical activities, on charges of "corrupting public morals," the Kurdish human rights group Hengaw reported. The Qom criminal court issued the ruling against singer Parasto Ahmadi, 29, guitarists Ehsan Birgdar and Soheil Fakhih Nassiri, and six others involved in producing the so-called "Caravansaray Concert." Ahmadi is from Nowshahr in the northern province of Mazandaran. The charges related to "producing and distributing obscene and immoral content in electronic media in a way that corrupts public morals," according to the rights group. The case stems from an unstreamed concert Ahmadi performed at the Deh Kachin Caravansaray in Qom province during 2024-2025, footage of which was broadcast live on YouTube. Security forces intervened after the video appeared online. The singer and the two musicians were detained in December 2024 and released on bail on January 3, 2025.