
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
TEHRAN (Worthy News) – Iranian singer and rapper Amir Hossein Maghsoudloo, widely known as Amir Tataloo, has been sentenced to death for blasphemy against Islam, Iranian officials said Monday.
The 37-year-old artist, a prominent figure in the country’s underground hip-hop scene, initially received a five-year prison sentence for allegedly insulting the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Worthy News learned.
However, trial observers said the case reopened after the prosecutor appealed, leading to a harsher sentence on appeal.
Tataloo, whose body is almost entirely covered in tattoos, is known for his outspoken criticism of Iran’s strict Islamic leadership.
Through his music and social media platforms, he has regularly condemned Tehran’s reported human rights abuses.
His controversial statements and what authorities view as his “defiance of strict cultural norms” made him popular in Iran’s music scene but a target of Islamic authorities.
Tataloo is am among several people being prosecuted for blasphemy, including Christians.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear Cambridge Christian School v. Florida High School Athletic Association, effectively letting stand a lower-court ruling that bars two Christian schools from offering a brief pre-game prayer over a stadium loudspeaker — even though both teams wanted the prayer and the event was between two private Christian schools.
President Donald Trump confirmed Monday that the United States will move forward with selling advanced F-35 stealth fighters to Saudi Arabia, announcing the decision just one day before Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrives at the White House for a high-profile visit aimed at deepening economic, technological, and defense cooperation.
The UN Security Council voted 13-0 on Monday to adopt a sweeping U.S.-drafted resolution that codifies President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza, endorses a new International Stabilization Force (ISF), and formally recognizes the establishment of a “Board of Peace” to be chaired by Trump himself. Russia and China abstained, allowing the measure to pass without a veto.
Questions have been raised about the future of one of Europe’s largest on-shore natural-gas reserves after parts of the Dutch province of Groningen were struck by one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded there.
Gunmen abducted 25 students from a girls’ school in northwest Nigeria early Monday after killing at least one staff member, adding to fears among the nation’s Christian minority, police and other sources confirmed.
South Africa has launched an investigation after 153 Palestinians unexpectedly arrived on a chartered flight at Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International Airport last week, prompting questions over who organized the journey and whether any fleeing Hamas fighters or officials may have been among them.
A planned auction of more than 600 Holocaust-era artifacts was cancelled in Germany after an outcry from survivors, victims’ families, civil society groups, and top government officials.