Iranian student sentenced to death for blasphemy over social media post

An Iranian court has sentenced 23-year-old accounting student Najmeh Amini to death for blasphemy over a social media post, prompting rights-group warnings.

• Amini, held in Vakilabad prison in Mashhad, was sentenced in a separate case to 12 years, six months and one day on charges including acting against national security.
• Amini told the court she posted the remarks while hallucinating after taking psychedelic mushrooms, a defence the presiding judge rejected.
• The death sentence is not final and remains subject to appeal before Iran's supreme court.
• Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, said the sentence risks normalising the use of the death penalty against peaceful expression.