Blogger sentenced to death in Iran on security-related charges

Marziyeh “Sevda” Ebrahimi Shamsabadi, a 33-year-old blogger from Bandar Abbas who has been detained since March, has been sentenced to death, according to information obtained by Iran International.

Branch 3 of the Bandar Abbas Revolutionary Court convicted her on charges including insulting Iran's supreme leader, media and propaganda activity against national security, intelligence and security activity on behalf of hostile governments, and taking and sending photographs to Persian-language media abroad, according to the information.

The court also sentenced her to between two and five years in prison, barred her from some government services, and ordered the confiscation of property. Her lawyer was notified of the death sentence on August 23.

Ebrahimi Shamsabadi was held in solitary confinement for 20 days and faced severe pressure during interrogation, according to information obtained by Iran International. Her family was not told where she was being held or about her condition during that period.

The sentence was issued by Judge Khajeh-Hassani, who was previously praised by judiciary officials as an exemplary judge for, among other things, issuing a high number of rulings and what they described as diligence in his work.

More political and protest-related death sentences

The case comes amid a series of death sentences against protesters and political detainees in Iran.

Earlier this month, US-based rights outlet HRANA reported that Ali Zarei Doozdarresi, a protester who lost sight in one eye after being shot during the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom protests, had been sentenced to death after returning to Iran from Germany.

Iran International also reported in August that Leila Abolhassani, a 43-year-old mother of two detained during the January protests in Shahin Shahr, had been sentenced to death on charges of “waging war against God.” Her case was sent to the Supreme Court following an appeal.

Rights groups warn of rising executions

Rights groups have accused Iranian authorities of increasingly using capital punishment against protesters and political dissidents.

Norway-based Iran Human Rights said last month that 29 people arrested in connection with the January 2026 protests had been executed since March 19, in addition to two protesters from the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom movement.

The US-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center said in August that it had documented 950 executions in Iran since the start of 2026, including at least 20 women and 30 protesters. The UN human rights chief has also accused Iran of using executions to “instill fear among the population and suppress dissent.”

Source: Iran International, Staff, September 12, 2026

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but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."
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