Video gay irani
One Iranian gay cleric, who conducted gay weddings in secret, was forced to flee the country, and has been threatened with death. BBC Persian's Ali Hamedani reports. Sextape scandal reveals the ‘double life’ of Iran’s ultra-conservative authorities Social networks in Iran have been flooded with compromising footage featuring several known ultra-conservative officials engaging in homosexual activities.
The impact of such strict laws
While homosexuality is punishable by death in Iran, the Iranian regime has attempted to deny the videos and cover up the scandals. We spoke to a former. The Iranian government is denying any prior knowledge of a gay sex scandal that has led to the suspension of an official in the ultra-conservative Islamic nation. Reza Tsaghati, the head of Culture. Iran is among the few countries in the world where gays still risk execution for their sexual orientation.
But Iran's gay community has succeeded in carving out greater space for itself in recent years and gaining some important social recognition. Through online activism, publishing poetry, literature and artwork online, and engaging with global gay culture through television and the internet. An official in charge of enforcing Iran’s morality code and hijab requirement for women was suspended earlier this month after an unconfirmed video released to social media purportedly showed.
These provisions carry a maximum penalty of death. Both men and women are criminalised under this law. These provisions have their origins in Islamic law, with Iran adopting a criminal code based upon Sharia principles. While same-sex acts have historically been criminalised in Iran and its predecessor states, there is evidence that they were largely tolerated until the Revolution. There is significant evidence of the law being enforced in recent years, with LGBT people being frequently subject to arrest, which can result in the imposition of the death penalty.
There have been consistent reports of discrimination and violence being committed against LGBT people in recent years, including murder, assault, harassment, denial of basic rights and services. In , a new Penal Code was ratified by the Guardian Council, having been ratified by the Consultative Assembly in Zahra Sedighi-Hamadani, who had been imprisoned with her, was released on bail in May.
Their death sentences were overturned. In February, it was reported that two men had been executed after being convicted for same-sex sexual activity six years previously. Activists and advocates claimed that the two women had been targeted because they were LGBT activists. The sentence was condemned by the European Union. In response to the sentence a group of UN experts condemned the move, calling for a stay of execution.
We strongly condemn the sentencing. Those accused of sodomy often faced summary trials in which evidentiary standards were not met. Although few details were available of specific cases, it was reported that the government executed LGBT people under the pretext of serious criminal charges such as rape. In January, it was reported that a year-old gay man had been publicly executed by hanging. In April, 30 men were arrested at a gathering in central Iran, transferred to Dastgerd Prison and charged with sodomy by a local court.
In July, a year-old boy, Hassan Afshar, was hanged following a conviction for raping another teenager, despite repeatedly maintaining that the sexual acts had been consensual. A report found that since at least , there have been a number of state-led raids on private parties followed by mass arrests and detention on suspicion of same-sex sexual acts.
Following their arrests, detainees are often forced to reveal the names of other LGBT people. In August, two men were executed by hanging for consensual same-sex intimacy. Some accused of sodomy have been convicted without understanding the charges against them. Some have been convicted without access to counsel. There are reports that human rights defenders have been charged with sodomy as a ploy to discredit them.
Lawyers defending clients charged with sodomy report limited access to their clients. In July, the head of culture and Islamic guidance in Gilan province, Reza Tsaghati, was dismissed from his position after allegedly engaging in gay sex in a video posted online. In May, Alireza Fazeli Monfared, a year-old who identified as a non-binary gay man, was abducted and murdered by several family members seemingly on the basis of his sexual orientation and gender identity.
Reports suggest that Alireza, who had been subjected to years of discrimination and abuse for his sexuality and gender non-conformity, was just days away from leaving Iran to seek asylum abroad before his identity was discovered after a family member opened a letter to Alireza exempting him from military service. Respondents to this survey also reported being beaten, detained, and flogged by security authorities.
LGBT people were subjected to forced and violating psychiatric and medical treatment. These legal provisions are based on a reading of religion that considers any sexual act outside heterosexual marriage to be impermissible.