Iran leader Khamenei’s niece Farideh Moradkhani sentenced to three years’ imprisonment

The Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei's niece was sentenced to imprisonment for three years after she was convicted for criticising the regime publicly and extending her support to the protests taking place across the country against the Islamic Republic, said her lawyer on Friday.

On November 23. Farideh Moradkhani, who belongs to that part of Khamenei’s family which has been critical of the regime for a long, was arrested by the police and has been in police custody since then.

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Moradkhani's lawyer Mohammad Hossein Aghasi, in a tweet, said that her trial took place in a clerical court, which is independent of the judiciary of the country and is only answerable to the supreme leader, although she is not a cleric.

The lawyer added that he was not allowed to attend the hearing where Moradkhani was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment initially.

However, his appeal was accepted by the court and her prison term was shortened by three years, the lawyer informed.

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Earlier, Moradkhani’s mother and the supreme leader's sister, Badri Hosseini Khamenei, had announced her opposition to Ali Khamenei's regime and expressed her solidarity with the movement against Mahsa Amini's killing in the police custody which has swept Iran.

In a letter released publicly by her son from France, Badri stated that all her ties with Ali Khamenei have been cut off and demanded that he should step down from his position.

(With inputs from agencies)