A human rights organization says that a jailed Iranian Instagram star— known for her transformation into a “zombie Angelina Jolie” — is in critical condition and currently on a ventilator after contracting the coronavirus in custody.
Lawyers for Fatemeh Khishvand, known on Instagram as “Sahar Tabar,” had asked for her to be released amid the country’s COVID-19 outbreak, but a judge refused to grant bail, according to the US-based Center for Human Rights in Iran.
“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,” human rights lawyer Payam Derafshan told the organization on Wednesday.
Khishvand, 22, was arrested in October amid a nationwide crackdown on Instagram celebrities. She faces a slew of charges including blasphemy, inciting violence and encouraging the corruption of young people, for expressing herself on her widely followed Instagram account.