Christians
UN expert highlights detention of Iranian Christians on ‘espionage’ charges
Article 18 – The UN’s Special Rapporteur (SR) on human rights in Iran highlighted the recent arrest of Christians on accusations of “espionage” or “collaboration” with Israel during her address to the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee yesterday.
Mai Sato was speaking as part of a joint interactive dialogue with Sara Hossain, head of the Fact-Finding Mission on Iran (FFMI) set up in the wake of the 2022 protests and reestablished earlier this year with a wider mandate that also includes religious discrimination.
Christian convert, 61, free after two years in prison
Article 18 (22.10.2025) – Mina’s summons to prison was delayed after she was run over by a car, after which metal plates had to be fitted in her ankle.
A 61-year-old Christian convert is free after nearly two years in prison on charges related to her leadership of a house-church.
Mina Khajavi, who suffers from arthritis and was denied medical care during her imprisonment, was released from Evin Prison on Monday after completing her sentence, which had been reduced earlier this year from six years to two and takes into account time spent in detention following her initial arrest in 2020.
USCIRF ‘abhors’ sentencing of Christian converts for religious activities
Article 18 (21.10.2025) – The chair of the independent US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has said its commissioners “abhor” the recent sentencing of five Iranian Christian converts “on propaganda charges for religious activities”.
Hessamuddin Mohammad Junaidi, Abolfazl Ahmadzadeh-Khajani, Morteza Faghanpour-Saasi and two others who have not been identified were sentenced in July to a combined more than 40 years in prison, and their convictions were upheld last month.
Why has Iran named a metro station after the Virgin Mary?
Article 18 (20.10.2025) – At a time when systemic discrimination against Christians and other religious minorities in Iran continues unabated, the opening of a new metro station named after Mary and adorned with Christian symbols stands as a striking contradiction.
It is akin to apartheid-era South Africa building a subway decorated with Black icons, while leaving its racist laws intact. You can decorate the stick of oppression — but for the victims, it remains the same stick.
In Iran, (Armenian and Assyrian) Christians, Zoroastrians, and Jews are recognised as official minorities, yet they have long faced numerous forms of discrimination.
Christians brought before notorious judge on ‘propaganda’ and ‘collusion’ charges
Article 18 (07.10.2025) – Three Christians who remain in Evin Prison over eight months after their arrest will face a second court hearing later this month on “propaganda” and “collusion” charges related to their religious activities.
Joseph Shahbazian, Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh and Aida Najaflou have been in prison since their arrest in February, with Joseph and Nasser having previously served prison sentences related to their Christian activities.
Christians’ prison sentences totalling over 40 years upheld by appeal court
Article 18 (01.10.2025) – A Tehran appeal court has upheld the convictions of five Christian converts to a combined total of over 40 years in prison on “propaganda” charges related to their religious activities.
Hessamuddin Mohammad Junaidi, Abolfazl Ahmadzadeh-Khajani, Morteza Faghanpour-Saasi and two others who have not been identified were sentenced in July and their convictions upheld yesterday by the 36th Branch of the Tehran Appeal Court.
The five Christians and at least two others were arrested at their homes and workplaces in the cities of Varamin and Pishva, near Tehran, in June 2024, before being detained in Evin Prison for between one and six months.
Baha’is
Religious freedom and exclusion in religious legal systems: cases of Bahá’ís in Iran and Ahmadis in Pakistan
Bylaw (30.10.2025) – One of the most significant challenges facing contemporary religious systems is the regulation of the rights of religious minorities. Legal systems approach this issue in varied ways, reflecting differences in political philosophy, historical development, and religious traditions. Some states adopt closed-list strategies, explicitly enumerating the communities entitled to recognition. Others employ more universalist frameworks, whereby secular law applies to all, but recognized groups are granted additional rights, most often in areas such as personal status. These divergent approaches shape not only the rights afforded to minorities but also the mechanisms through which exclusion is enforced.
Six Baha’i women arrested and sent to prison in Iran
Iran Press Watch (28.10.2025) – Six Baha’i women were arrested and transferred to prison to begin serving sentences totaling nearly 39 years.
The women – Neda Mohebi, Farideh Ayoubi, Zarrindokht Ahadzadeh, Zhaleh Rezaei, Atefeh Zahedi, and Noora Ayoubi – were taken into custody after being summoned to the enforcement office of a court in Hamedan.
Branch 2 of the Hamedan Revolutionary Court sentenced Mohebi to seven years and eight months in prison and the other five women to six years and three months each.
The court suspended three years of Mohebi’s sentence and two years each for Ahadzadeh, Rezaei, and Ayoubi, the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights reported.
The women were convicted of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic” and “organizing illegal Baha’i classes and groups.”
They were previously arrested on November 7, 2023, and released on bail in December 2023 pending trial.
After acceptance of a retrial: Anisa Fanaian again sentenced to 8 years in Prison
Iran Press Watch (26.10.2025) – The prison sentence of Anisa Fanaian, a Bahá’í citizen, remained unchanged following the acceptance of her request for retrial by the Supreme Court and the referral of her case to a parallel branch. Branch 10 of the Semnan Provincial Court of Appeals has once again sentenced her to eight years in prison in its new ruling.
According to information received by HRANA, despite the Supreme Court’s acceptance of the retrial, the parallel branch of the Semnan Court of Appeals has reissued the previous sentence of eight years in prison for Ms. Fanaian.
Shahram Fallah, Baha’i Citizen, sentenced to imprisonment and exile
Iran Press Watch (26.10.2025) – Shahram Fallah, a 64-year-old Baha’i citizen currently held in Kerman Prison, has been sentenced by Branch 1 of the Kerman Revolutionary Court to 13 years, 6 months, and 2 days in prison, along with one year of exile in Birjand County.
According to the verdict, Mr. Fallah received 7 years, 6 months, and 1 day in prison for allegedly conducting educational and proselytizing activities deemed “deviant and contrary to Islamic law” through “false religious claims” and “organizational ties with foreign entities.” He was also sentenced to 6 years and 1 day in prison for forming a group with the intent to disrupt national security.
Shiraz: Bahá’í citizens Negar Misaghian and Shakib Farzan arrested
Iran Press Watch (21.10.2025) – On Monday, October 20, Bahá’í citizens Negar Misaghian and Shakib Farzan, residents of Shiraz, were arrested by security forces and transferred to the Shiraz Intelligence Detention Center, known as Plaque 100.
According to HRANA, the news agency of the Human Rights Activists in Iran, Bahá’í citizens Negar Misaghian and Shakib Farzan were arrested in Shiraz.
Based on information received by HRANA, the arrests of Ms. Misaghian and Mr. Farzan took place today, Monday, October 20, at their homes by security agents. After their arrest, the two were transferred to the Shiraz Intelligence Detention Center, known as Plaque 100.
Nasim Simyari, political prisoner, goes on hunger strike in protest over the continued imprisonment of a Bahá’í citizen
Iran Press Watch (21.10.2025) – Nasim Simyari, a political prisoner and one of those arrested during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests, announced in a note from Evin Prison that she has gone on a hunger strike in support of Fariba Kamalabadi, a Bahá’í prisoner, and in a call for her release.
Fariba Kamalabadi, together with Mahvash Sabet (Shahriari), another former member of the leadership group of the Bahá’í community of Iran known as the “Yaran of Iran,” was released from prison in 2017 after completing a 10-year sentence. However, both women were re-arrested in August 2022, held for months in solitary confinement, and again sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Aghah Sadeghi imprisoned to serve one-year sentence
BIC news (07.10.2025) – In early September 2025, two Baha’i residents in Karaj received a threatening text message from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence.
The message, marked “confidential” and stamped with the Ministry’s seal, stated that all their personal, financial, and family information, as well as their movements, phone calls, and online activities are under constant surveillance. It further stated that any attempt at concealment or denial would be “futile” and noted that a “security file” has already been opened in their names.
Iranian Court sentences Baha’i actress to prison
Iran Press Watch (06.10.2025) – A Tehran Revolutionary Court has sentenced a Baha’i actress to prison on charges of “propaganda” against the government.
Paria Marandiz, who has worked in cinema and theater, was convicted by Branch 23 of the Revolutionary Court on charges of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic” and “propaganda activities aimed at strengthening and reinforcing Israel.”
She received a total sentence of three years.
Under Article 134 of Iran’s Islamic Penal Code, Marandiz will serve two years in prison, the harsher of the sentences. Eighteen months of her sentence have been suspended for five years.
