A couple in Iran, Astiyazh Haghighi and her fiance Amir Mohammad Ahmadi would be facing a jail term of more than ten years each for dancing “romantically” in front of the Azadi Tower in Tehran, the country’s capital.
The duo was accused of “encouraging public corruption and public prostitution.” Both were further charged with “gathering with the intention of disrupting national security.”
Reports held that Haghighi disobeyed the country’s restrictive laws for women by refusing to wear a headscarf.
Both were each given a sentence of 10 years and six months in prison, according to the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).
Additionally, they were barred from leaving Iran and from using the internet.
According to sources close to their families quoted by HRANA, they were denied access to lawyers during the judicial proceedings, and efforts to secure their release on bail have been unsuccessful.
The HRANA also added that Haghighi was currently held in the infamous Qarchak women’s prison outside of Tehran.
Qarchak according to activists was a dreaded facility whose condition was often criticised.
