An Iranian woman who posted highly distorted images of herself online has been sentenced to 10 years in prison, a year after she was arrested for her social media activities.
Sahar Tabar, 19, whose real name is Fatemeh Khishvand, became famous after posting some images of a deformed face, which they compared to a 'zombie'. Following the posting of these photos, she had 486,000 followers on Instagram.
She was accused of manipulating young people and disrespecting the Islamic Republic. In the spring she begged for release from custody, saying she was infected with Covid-19.
At one point Tabar called on actress Angelina Jolie, who allegedly resembled her in some of the photos, to campaign for her release, saying: "The Islamic Republic has a history of torturing women. We must be united. against this gender rape ".
Charges against Tabar first included blasphemy, incitement to violence, earning money through inadequate means, and encouraging young people to harm themselves.
The report described Tabar as "a victim with an abnormal personality and mental state".
Medical records also suggested she had a mental illness, with a history of visits to psychiatric hospitals, making the 10-year sentence even less explicable. Her lawyers had demanded that she be released on bail, and justified her age at the time she committed the alleged offenses.
