Back in January, 18-year old Iranian girl Nazanin Mahabad Fatehi was sentenced to death by an Iranian court. Her crime was killing the man who was trying to rape her and her niece. Despite their attempt to flee their attackers, Nazanin and her niece were cornered, and Nazanin was left with no choice but to stab the attackers.
Now, Nazanin's supporters have put together a web site highlighting her cause at supportnazanin.org. At this site, people can get updates on the case and learn how to support Nazanin.
Nazanin, who was 17 years old at the time of the incident, said that after the three men started to throw stones at them, the two girls' boyfriends quickly escaped on their motorbikes leaving the pair helpless.
She described how the three men pushed her and her 16-year-old niece Somayeh onto the ground and tried to rape them, and said that she took out a knife from her pocket and stabbed one of the men in the hand. (Iran Focus)
She told the court, "I wanted to defend myself and my niece. I did not want to kill that boy. At the heat of the moment I did not know what to do because no one came to our help." This story has received scant attention from world media, but one can be assured that a civilized court would give her nothing more than a light sentence if anything at all. An Iranian Court would certainly not have imposed the death sentence if the rapist had killed Nazanin.
Nazanin Afshin-Jam, a former Miss Canada, has also started an effort to save Nazanin Mahabad Fatehi's life. Though I question the efficacy of online petitions, Afshin-Jam has started one here.