by Steve Dew-Jones | 5 Mar 2024 | News
UN Special Rapporteur Javaid Rehman has told the Islamic Republic of Iran to “end the criminalisation of the peaceful expression of faith” and “refrain from persecuting peaceful religious gatherings in private homes and other premises”. “In many cases, members of...
by Steve Dew-Jones | 4 Mar 2024 | News
A house-church member in a city near Tehran has been charged with “teaching activities that educate in a deviant way contrary to the holy religion of Islam, through making false religious claims”. Hossein Sha’bani, who is 47 years old and known as Youhana, was...
by Steve Dew-Jones | 1 Mar 2024 | News
EU countries have been told they cannot automatically reject asylum claims based on professed conversions to Christianity, even if the conversion took place after the individual left their country of origin. The new ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ),...
by Steve Dew-Jones | 28 Feb 2024 | Features
Esmaeil Maghrebinezhad is pensive as he relates the story of his conversion to Christianity in the early days of the Islamic Republic and the knock-on effects this decision had on every aspect of his life. “My whole life was affected by persecution and harassment due...
by Steve Dew-Jones | 28 Feb 2024 | Witness Statements
For a summary of Esmaeil’s story, you can read our feature article here. Introduction 1. My name is Esmaeil Maghrebinezhad and I was born in 1954 in Tehran. I grew up in a traditional Muslim family of Sayyids [descendants of Muhammad]. I remember my mother praying,...
