24 Oct 2025 | Afghanistan, Americas, Asia and Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, Iran, Italy, News and features, Russia, United Kingdom, United States
Bombarded with news from all angles every day, important stories can easily pass us by. To help you cut through the noise, every Friday Index publishes a weekly news roundup of some of the key stories covering censorship and free expression. This week, we look at the UK’s easing of arrests over speech and the songs Putin doesn’t want you to hear.
Italy: Bomb fails to deter Journalist
Prominent Italian investigative journalist Sigfrido Ranucci, who was the target of a bomb attack this month, has continued to speak out against lawsuits against journalists by members of the Italian government..
On 16 October a bomb exploded outside of the journalist’s home just as he arrived back with his daughter, destroying two cars but resulting in no injuries. Ranucci has been under police protection since 2011 following threats made after his investigations into organised crime groups.
Ranucci’s work has not only drawn the ire of criminal gangs, but also members of President Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government, a number of whom have sued Report, the RAI 3 show hosted by Ranucci as part of a wider attack on press freedom in the country.
Only days after the attempt on his life, Ranucci spoke at a seminar for a prize dedicated to murdered Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. You can watch the conference including Ranucci’s speech here.
Russia: Teen singer rattles Russians
An 18-year-old Russian singer has been arrested following street performances of banned anti-Putin songs last week.
Diana Loginova, who performs under the name Naoko is part of the street band Stoptime, who are known for their performances on the streets of St. Petersburg. She faces a potential charge of discrediting the Russian army, a charge that can lead to a year in prison.
One of the songs performed was the 2023 track Cooperative Swan Lake by exiled rapper Noize MC. The song references the broadcast of Swan Lake on Soviet television during the 1991 coup d’etat, with the ballet becoming a symbol of the Russian state attempting to conceal current events from the public.
The song has been banned across Russia for its anti-Putin sentiment.
Hear one of the songs that Putin doesn’t want you to hear and watch the video of one of Stoptime’s performances here. For non-Russian speakers, the translation is here.
England: Met decides not to investigate “non-crime hate incidents”
The UK police have dropped charges against activists who projected pictures onto Windsor Castle, and against writer Graham Linehan.
Four members of Led by Donkeys, the group responsible for the projections, had been arrested in September after they projected photographs of US President Donald Trump and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein onto the castle during Trump’s state visit.
A spokesperson for the group said: “We’re happy police resources can now be redirected to investigating Prince Andrew.”
Father Ted writer Graham Linehan was arrested on 1 September by armed police at Heathrow airport for posts he had made on social media attacking transgender people The police action came under intense scrutiny,, leading Prime Minister Keir Starmer to state that the police must “focus on the most serious issues”.
The Metropolitan police has since announced that it will stop investigating what it calls “non-crime hate incidents” following the incident.
A spokesman for the Met police said: “We understand the concern around this case. The commissioner has been clear he doesn’t believe officers should be policing toxic culture war debates, with current laws and rules on inciting violence online leaving them in an impossible position.
“As a result, the Met will no longer investigate non-crime hate incidents. We believe this will provide clearer direction for officers, reduce ambiguity and enable them to focus on matters that meet the threshold for criminal investigations.
“These incidents will still be recorded and used as valuable pieces of intelligence to establish potential patterns of behaviour or criminality.
“We will continue to investigate and arrest those who commit hate crimes – allowing us to comply with statutory guidance while focusing our resources on criminality and public protection.”
U.S.A.: United States of AI
AI videos have made the rounds in the US this week, with former Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo putting out an AI campaign advert, and President Donald Trump using AI to mock the No Kings Day protests.
Cuomo, who resigned as Governor of New York during investigations into sexual misconduct in 2021, posted the now deleted AI generated advert to X as part of his campaign to become Mayor of New York. The video depicts various criminals expressing their support for fellow candidate Zohran Mamdani. Critics have denounced the video as racist.
Trump’s contribution to AI videos this week included a video posted to his Truth Social page showing himself wearing a crown, flying a fighter jet marked “King Trump” and dropping what appears to be excrement onto protestors. The mockery clearly takes aim at the ongoing No Kings Day protests happening across the country.
Iran: Lavish wedding exposes official
The wedding of the daughter of a high ranking Iranian official has led to accusations of hypocrisy across Iran.
Ali Shamkhani is an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and a strict enforcer of the country’s headscarf requirements, with the country planning to mobilise 80,000 morality police in Tehran as part of the crackdown.
The leaked video shows the bride dressed in a western-style wedding dress, as well as multiple women attending the event without headscarves.Criticism has also been aimed at the estimated $21,000 luxury venue being used during a wider economic crisis.
Similar displays of wealth from so-called ‘nepo babies’ fueled the flames that led to anti corruption protests and eventually full scale revolts in Nepal.
Afghanistan
Here is a link to another article we thought was interesting this week, a short essay about hypocrisy and the suppression of girl’s education in Afghanistan by Masrora Nabizada.
31 Oct 2024 | Iran, Middle East and North Africa, News and features
For many of us, specifically those who have experienced prison, Toomaj Salehi is the symbol of resistance against an autocratic regime’s oppression, and whose honest and unapologetic voice cuts through the sheer reality of a society suffering from repression and corruption.
To us, condemning Salehi to death for his songs and lyrics is the equivalent of declaring war against the people of Iran.
The first time I heard Salehi was right at the beginning of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement. He seemed like an ordinary man with a real voice in his music, suddenly thrown into the national and international spotlight while holding onto his truth. His music showed the power of ordinary voices in Iran and beyond.
Salehi has long challenged the Islamic Republic of Iran’s establishment. Through his songs and lyrics, he has condemned the state’s political repression, injustice, corruption and violation of women’s rights for many years. As a result, he has gained fans amongst Iranians inside and outside the country while managing to outrage the government.
Salehi condemns the Islamic state for its corruption, which increases the gap in society where the poor get poorer and the rich become richer. In his song Normal, he speaks bluntly about a rampant poverty which is inflicted on a resource-rich country. Salehi articulates how sanctions, as well as self-inflicted international isolation, have resulted in a huge part of society hardly being able to make ends meet while those in power are busy building tower blocks and pocketing wealth at home and abroad.
Salehi tells of his ambitions for living in a normal country, where people can have the freedom to speak and criticise their political leaders and to defend their basic rights without being harassed, prosecuted or imprisoned.
At the heat of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement in Iran in September 2022, following the death of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the morality police, Salehi released several songs in support of the movement, which increased his popularity amongst the people but also the anger of the authorities. He was arrested, and he was released on bail only after the Supreme Court overturned the charges in November 2023.
The state has systematically used forced confession to silence and repress dissent for decades and on his release, Salehi posted a YouTube video in which he described the torture and forced confession he went through while in detention. Three days later, the security forces raided his house in Isfahan and arrested him again. Salehi was sentenced to death by the Revolutionary Court of Isfahan in April 2024.
After an Index-led campaign the Supreme Court ruled out the death penalty but at the time of publication, Salehi remains behind bars. Like many others, he finds himself trapped in this circle of corruption and power. Freedom for Salehi is a world where he is allowed to articulate his vision without being punished; in which the government is willing to improve people’s daily lives, and a regime which does not indoctrinate its citizens and ensures they have the means to live dignified lives.
Through his music, he tries to be the voice of those terrified to speak up, and it is only fair to echo his voice beyond his country’s borders.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is a former hostage in Iran and author of the forthcoming book A Yard of Sky: A Story of Love, Resistance and Hope. Below is a translation of Toomaj Salehi's song Normal.
Normal
By Toomaj Salehi
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
A labourer’s annual wage is worth a dinner abroad
Yes! Of course, Sir! Life is normal
We don’t dare say otherwise, lest we get in trouble
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
Some have to sleep in tombs, others own 10 high-rises
Yes! Of course, Sir! Life is normal
We don’t ask for what is ours, lest it be a crime
Sir, have you seen down there? The empty plates?
You are so enlightened, have you seen the dark city?
Have you seen these quarters where the waists are so narrowed, from your blood-sucking
These quarters where you dump your waste from above
Have you seen how different we are?
Be my guest, no need to buy tickets to watch
Kid! Go back to your room, you are scaring the gentleman
He is not used to seeing ragged and worn clothes, not even from afar
Are you watching Sir?
You shine like a star, with the glimmering light of the ones you executed
Instead of being reprimanded, you have been promoted for your mistakes
You cut off any dissident at will
Sir! My words are sour, have some sweets to wash off the taste
Here, people are just alive, they don’t have a life
Our kids sleep with empty stomachs
Sorry, how do you sleep with a clear conscience again?
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
A labourer’s annual wage is worth a dinner abroad
Yes! Of course, Sir! Life is normal
We don’t dare say otherwise, lest we get in trouble
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
Some have to sleep in tombs, others own 10 high-rises
Yes! Of course, Sir! Life is normal
We don’t ask for what is ours, lest it be a crime
While the rest of the world is supporting their citizens
Our government denied responsibility and kept complaining
It called protesters insurrectionists
Did it stop at imprisonment? No, it committed atrocities (as well)
No doubt “We broke records”!
We are the only country, where the (COVID) vaccine was different for the rich and poor
In the age of science, women are beaten for their beauty
Thrown in the back of a police van, taken to unnamed prisons
Our shopping cart is empty, no more oil left to export
The rest of the world are shooting for the moon and mars, while we are in the abyss
We are the dead who can’t die
Since we can’t pay for the burial and the tombstone
I’m ringing the alarms, hoping ears burn
We have people who are on the verge of death from starvation
They have kissed the lips of death, where are they?
Perhaps someone should sing them lullabies
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
A labourer’s annual wage is worth a dinner abroad
Yes! Of course, Sir! Life is normal
We don’t dare say otherwise, lest we get in trouble
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
Some have to sleep in tombs, others own 10 high-rises
Yes! Yes Sir! Life is normal
We don’t ask for what is ours, lest it be a crime
We are constantly worried about the rent
We are scared for roofless schools in the desert
A bird can’t fly without food and water
Is this a normal life, or are we sick?
Cheap products cost a fortune
Labourer is working overtime, yet the car he wants to buy is getting further away
In this corrupt cycle, he is struggling
The regime sacrifices a million for one
For the deeply corrupt regime apologists in the US
Those who compensate for their inferiority by debauchery
There is no Left and Right here, they are all the same
We say we are trapped in a swamp, they say they hope to reform it
Is there anything that makes you feel ashamed?
Do you think citizens are your slaves?
You expect people not to eat bread so yours is buttered?
Did I confuse you by calling you Sir?
Oil tankers in a queue, on their way
Red tulip covered lands, green dollar bills
The poverty ridden city, the only sound is the cry of death
To hell with the regime officials
We are all united, We want freedom
Locked hands, human chains
We are all united, We want freedom
The power of unity is ours
Oil tankers in a queue, on their way
Red tulip covered lands, green dollar bills
The poverty ridden city, the only sound is the cry of death
To hell with the regime officials
Toomaj Salehi is an Iranian rapper who received an Index Freedom of Expression Award in 2023. A year later after he was sentenced to death in Iran. Index launched a petition signed by leading cultural figures calling for his death sentence to be immediately and unconditionally quashed and for him to be released from detention, with all other charges dismissed. At the time of publication the Supreme Court has reversed his death sentence, but he is still behind bars. Lyrics translated by TurfHeadClic on Lyricstranslate.com
