21 July 2019: Sevada Aghasar, an ethnic Armenian, has been conditionally released from prison (IRAN)
Following an unsuccessful appeal, Sevada Aghasar was summoned to serve a five-year prison sentence in 2017, more than two years after he had originally been sentenced.
Aghasar had been arrested with two Christian converts, Masoud Mirzaei and Ebrahim Firouzi in August 2013. Mirzaei was later released, but Aghasar and Firouzi were charged in March 2015 with “action against national security through collusion and gathering” and, in April 2015, they were each sentenced to five years in prison.
Aghasar was permitted early release from Evin Prison on 21 July 2019 after serving half of the prison sentence, but with provisions (mostly restricting evangelical activity).
HRWF had largely publicized their case and mentioned them on our list of religious prisoners on our website: See prisoners’ database now.