An Iranian Instagram influencer who was previously dubbed 'Zombie Angelina Jolie' after she posted heavily distorted and edited pictures of herself online has been sentenced to 10 years in jail, it is reported.
Sahar Tabar, 19, whose real name is Fatemeh Khishvand, was arrested last year over her social media activities. According to the Guardian she was charged with corruption of young people and disrespect for the Islamic Republic.
Watch this interview with Tabar on Iranian TV:Tabar, who once boasted 486,000 followers on Instagram, rose to prominence as a result of pictures she uploaded of herself with a gaunt, zombie-like face.
The Guardian reports that Tabar has previously called on Angelina Jolie to campaign for her release, saying, "The Islamic Republic has a history of tormenting women. We need to be united against this gender apartheid."
Initial charges against the former influencer included blasphemy, inciting violence, gaining income through inappropriate means and encouraging youths to corruption, though she said that she had been cleared of two of the four charges.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Tabar had caught coronavirus while in prison. Commenting on the situation at the time, human rights lawyer Payam Derafshan told the Center For Human Rights In Iran on Wednesday that: "We find it unacceptable that this young woman has now caught the coronavirus in these circumstances while her detention order has been extended during all this time in jail."
However, the head of the prison in which she was being held at the time denied the claims "The news released by the lawyer of Fatemeh Khishvand is not true and I deny it," said Mehdi Mohammad.
In an interview on the state-owned television channel IRTV2 Tabar said:
"I do not currently look like my photoshopped pictures. My mother was telling me to stop, but I didn't listen. Sometimes the words of a stranger or a friend can be more important than those of a parent."
Tabar's lawyer had asked for her to be bailed, pointing to her age at the time of the alleged offences. Instead, she has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
