Iranian Anglican minister resettled in US after threat of deportation from Turkey 31 October 2022 News An Iranian Anglican minister and his family, who had been threatened with deportation from Turkey, have now been safely resettled in the United States. Pastor Hekmat Salimi, his wife Mahindokht and their daughter Sama arrived in Atlanta late on Saturday night, after eight months of fearing they may be deported back to Iran. The pastor and his family fled Iran in 2016 after years of harassment by intelligence agents and multiple arrests. But having lived in Turkey for six years as asylum-seekers, without being recognised as refugees, in February this year they were suddenly told they must leave the country within seven days or face forcible deportation back to Iran. In the days that followed, another Iranian Anglican minister who now lives in the UK, Rev Mohammad Eghtedarian, set up a petition calling on the Turkish authorities to stop the deportation and on the “UNHCR and international monitoring bodies to ensure Hekmat and his family are protected”. Meanwhile, the family laid low, and prayed. Now, finally, more than eight months later, Pastor Hekmat and his family are safe, having been welcomed into the United States by Anglican Archbishop Foley Beach. Article18’s advocacy director, Mansour Borji, gave this reaction: “We welcome the news of Pastor Hekmat and his family’s safe arrival in the US. They have suffered greatly both in Iran as persecuted Christians and also in Turkey as refugees. No-one should be subjected to so much pressure only for peacefully practising their faith. “We also remain concerned for the fate of many more persecuted Iranian Christians in Turkey and elsewhere in the world, who are stranded with no safe place to call home.”
‘The interrogator made fun of my words and even the colour of my skin’ 21 October 2022 Features Sahar Dashti experienced racism as a child as one of very few dark-skinned children in her city, so she was hesitant when after becoming a Christian she was asked to help with the Sunday school. And when, instead of racism, Sahar experienced love and acceptance from the children, the impact was significant. “A heart that had been broken in the past as a result of the words and actions of many children was healed by God through the children of our Sunday school,” she says. But when Sahar and her friends were arrested for their Christian activities, Sahar’s interrogator told her she faced a heavier sentence because she had worked in the Sunday school or, as he put it, had been “misleading children” by teaching them about Christianity. Sahar’s interrogator then went on to offer her a job. “You’re clearly very talented in your ability to attract children, teenagers and young people,” he said. “You had a positive impact on them, worked very well with them. Come, cooperate with us, and we’ll give you a high salary and you can attract and guide children towards Islam!” Sahar’s story, like that of so many other Iranian Christians, is one of conversion, finding a house-church, arrest, sentencing – in Sahar’s case to a year in prison – and then ultimately being forced to leave the country. Sahar was among six Christian women arrested in February 2013 at a meeting of house-church leaders in a city near Isfahan. The women were detained for nearly two weeks in the infamous “Alef-Ta” ward of the city’s Dastgerd Prison, where Sahar experienced further racism from her interrogator. “He made fun of my words, and even the colour of my skin,” she recalls. The interrogator’s questions, meanwhile, focused on Sahar’s Christian faith and church activities. “The interrogator asked: ‘What year did you become a Christian? When were you baptised? Who was your supervisor? Who were you in contact with? In which places have you been active? Which foreign countries did you travel to? Who were your teachers there? What did you teach the children?’, etc,” Sahar says. Sahar was asked to write down the answers, and was just responding to one about baptism by writing that she had been “baptised by the Holy Spirit” when her interrogator violently kicked her chair. “If the chair hadn’t been up against the ledge behind me, I’m sure my head would have hit against the wall, and been broken,” she says. This wasn’t the only time Sahar was scared during her detention. “Once, during an interrogation, I heard the moans of one of my friends as he was being tortured,” she says, “and the interrogator threatened me that if I didn’t answer his questions, he would do the same to me.” Sahar says she had also heard stories of women being raped in prison. “I was very afraid, and prayed about it,” she says. When Sahar and her friends were later transferred to the women’s ward of the prison, they couldn’t sleep for fear. “Most of us stayed awake till morning, with fear and trembling, because there were dangerous criminals in that women’s ward who would rape girls and younger women,” she says. Sahar’s family were also harassed, including her mother, who had a heart condition. “One of the interrogators called my family and said, ‘Your daughter has been sentenced to death!’” Sahar recalls. “My mother was shocked to hear this and, because of her weak heart, her condition worsened and she had to go to hospital.” Sahar and her friends were charged with “propaganda against the holy regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran through membership in anti-regime groups by forming groups and recruiting members with the coordination of foreign elements to propagate evangelical Christianity”, and “illegitimate relations” – because unrelated men and women had gathered together. For these “crimes”, Sahar and her friends were sentenced to a year in prison, which was later upheld by an appeal court. But by this time, Sahar and many of her friends had already left the country. Sahar is now living as a refugee, but even after leaving she says her family have been harassed and threatened by intelligence agents. “After I left Iran, agents of the Ministry of Intelligence went to our house twice at 6.30 am or 7 am to arrest me,” she says. “My mother protested: ‘You are coming to our house to terrorise us, even though you know Sahar has left the country!’ “My mother died in 2018, and I wasn’t able to see her even once after leaving the country, as the doctor wouldn’t let her fly because of her heart disease.” Sahar was married in 2019, to another Iranian Christian refugee named Parham, but she says their situation, like those of so many other asylum-seekers, remains “uncertain”. “Although my asylum application was accepted, due to the recent US immigration laws, our case, like that of many other refugees, has remained stagnant,” she says. Yet Sahar remains hopeful, and says that even though she and Parham were unable to hold a planned wedding celebration in 2020 due to the pandemic, “getting married and starting a new chapter of life has brought me a sense of freshness and hope”. You can read Sahar’s full Witness Statement here.
Sahar Dashti 21 October 2022 Witness Statements For a summary of Sahar’s story, you can read our feature article here. Background and conversion 1. My name is Masoumeh Dashti Aqizadeh, but I prefer to be called Sahar. I was born in November 1981 into a Muslim family in Lenjan County in Isfahan Province. I have four sisters and three brothers. My father worked in an iron-smelting factory. While my mother was pregnant with me, he had a heart attack, after which he was paralysed from the leg down, so he had to retire. He didn’t receive much money after his retirement, so we were in a difficult financial situation. Then, when I was a teenager, he had a stroke, and this time he was completely paralysed. We took care of him at home, but he died a year later. 2. From then on, I, my mother, and my elder brother and sister all had to work. My mother used to look after children at nurseries, or care for the sick. Sometimes she would clean people’s houses as well, so we could meet our household expenses. Once, on the way to work, she was hit by a car and her legs were broken. Due to her injuries, she wasn’t able to work as before, so as a teenager it became even more necessary for me to study and work at the same time. 3. I loved my father very much, so his death had a significant emotional impact on me. I had no drive, no purpose, no hope or reason to live. I blamed God for his death and complained to Him, asking why He had taken my father away from us at such a young age. I seriously considered committing suicide. One of the few hobbies I had was participating in a theatre group, and a friend of mine named Sara, whom I had met in the theatre, talked to me about Jesus Christ. I had always liked the symbol of the Cross, but I didn’t know much about Christianity. In religion classes at school, Jesus had been introduced as a prophet of peace and friendship, but that was all I knew. 4. Sara had become a Christian a few days before we met, and she spoke about it with enthusiasm. I felt as though God must have heard my pain and seen that I was considering suicide, and that He had decided to rescue my life from its meaninglessness and stagnation. I remember the day well – it was 23 October 2001 – when I became a Christian. The problems in my life remained the same, but my personality and emotional well-being had changed. I felt a strange peace and happiness. The love of the Heavenly Father had filled all the voids created in me by my father’s death, and I eagerly read the Bible. House-church activities 5. I lived with my family in a city on the outskirts of Isfahan, and Sara introduced me to the house-church group they had there. We used to gather in a home with other Christians, and in these meetings we prayed and worshipped, listened to teaching and sermons. Also, as a spiritual family, we got to know each other, and helped each other to grow and to change. 6. After a while, they asked if I would like to teach the children at the church, or as it was known among us, to serve in the “Sunday school”. I have dark skin, and in the neighbourhood where I grew up, all the other children had fair skin and I had often been ridiculed because of my skin colour. My friends used to make fun of my dark skin and curly hair, and it had made me question why God had made me that way. It felt unjust, and I questioned whether God could be a just God. “Why did you make me different?” I asked Him. As a result of these experiences, when they asked me whether I wanted to serve at the Sunday school, I had no real desire to communicate with children and only reluctantly accepted. But then, on the very first day that I went to a Christian couple’s home to see their child, the girl jumped into my arms and clung to me tightly. I was surprised, and over time the number of children in our group increased and everyone loved me in a special way and really cared for me. Some of the parents even said: “Our children aren’t even this close to their aunts or uncles!” In this way, a heart that had been broken in the past as a result of the words and actions of many children was healed by God through the children of our Sunday school. Through these children, I realised that I had been created beautifully and uniquely, and as a result of this my way of thinking about myself and God’s creation changed. 7. The number of children in our groups in Isfahan and the surrounding area increased day by day, and we held weekly meetings in order to train new helpers to serve at the Sunday schools. Sara and her two sisters, Leila and Atena, were the leaders of our house-churches, although we also had a pastor and a church overseer. I helped out in the Sunday schools we had in Isfahan and its suburbs, and also in Khuzestan Province [southwest of Isfahan]. Due to security concerns, I always wore a khimar [headscarf that also covers the neck and shoulders], and sometimes in certain villages and neighbourhoods I even wore a chador [full body covering] so as not to the draw the attention of people in those areas [to the presence of a stranger in their midst]. 8. Sometimes I also used to attend Christian conferences outside Iran. As a Persian-speaking Christian, I wasn’t able to get baptised in Iran, but on 20 November 2011 I was baptised at one of these conferences, in Turkey. Arrest 9. On 20 February 2013, I and other church volunteers gathered together at the home of a couple named Ramin Bakhtiarvand and Nasrin Kiamarzi, in Shahin Shahr [north of Isfahan]. We had all typed up our reports about our various activities, to give to our pastor. Then, at 8.30pm, the pastor read from the Bible, and we were meditating on these verses when the doorbell rang. Ramin looked through the spyhole in the door and said: “It’s a man I don’t know.” Our pastor said: “Maybe it’s a neighbour.” Ramin opened the door and a few strong male agents in uniform, together with one female agent, entered the apartment. There were 15 agents in all, some inside and some outside the apartment, keeping the building under their control. 10. One of the agents had a video camera and filmed everything from the moment they entered. He asked each of us our name, surname, and the names of the cities where we lived, and filmed us as we answered. 11. One of our friends, whose name was Arash, asked the agents: “Do you have a warrant?” One of the agents replied: “We’ll show you the warrant in time!” They didn’t allow us to say anything else. The women were told to put on our manteaus [loose-fitting cardigans] and headscarves. Then they searched all our belongings and the apartment, and put name-tags on all our electronic devices. 12. At around midnight they put us in a van. Some of us were handcuffed, and some blindfolded. Both Sara and I were handcuffed. They took us to Dastgerd Prison in Isfahan. We had to wait a lot outside the prison because they didn’t have an arrest warrant for us, so at first they couldn’t take us inside the prison. But after many phone calls, they finally succeeded and we were taken into the prison compound. Then they took us inside the prison, to the Alef-Ta [“A.T.”] ward. Interrogations 13. We were placed on chairs, set apart from each other, in a room in the A.T. ward, and at around 1 or 1.30am one of the interrogators came up to me. He held a piece of paper towards me, and said in a rude tone: “Answer the questions on the paper!” I said: “My mother has a heart problem, and it’s now 1.30 in the morning! My mother doesn’t know where I am, so I won’t write anything until you give me permission to call my mother!” Another interrogator, who always wore purple and therefore became known by us simply as “Purple”, intervened and allowed me to call my mother and let her know that I was fine. I actually called my brother, who worked at the iron-smelting factory, and said: “Ali, I have been arrested and taken to Dastgerd Prison in Isfahan. Please tell Mum.” The officer took the phone from me and said: “You had no right to say that we arrested you!” That night, my brothers and sisters took everything related to Christianity out of our house. 14. The next day, the agents of the Ministry of Intelligence went to our house and searched it. Then, because they couldn’t find any evidence, they threatened my family a lot. 15. My interrogator’s questions focused on my Christian faith and church activities. He asked: “What year did you become a Christian? When were you baptised? Who was your supervisor? Who were you in contact with? In which places have you been active? Which foreign countries did you travel to? Who were your teachers there? What did you teach the children?”, etc. I was just responding to the question regarding baptism, by writing that I had been baptised by the Holy Spirit, when the interrogator read my answer and kicked my chair hard. If the chair hadn’t been up against the edge of the ledge behind me, I’m sure my head would have hit against the wall and been broken. 16. It was unfortunate that the Ministry of Intelligence had arrested us on the day we all had our written reports with us about our activities. I had even bought a bus ticket to Khuzestan for two days later, which would have been the Friday, and this ticket was still in my bag. 17. I told my interrogator that I just played with the children at the church, but over time they read my activity reports on my laptop and found out that I also taught them about Christian beliefs. This led them to say: “Your sentence will be heavier than the others, because you have been misleading children!” 18. My interrogator knew that my brother worked in a factory and received low wages. After reading the reports I had written, he said: “You’re clearly very talented in your ability to attract children, teenagers and young people; you had a positive impact on them, worked very well with them. Come, cooperate with us, and we’ll give you a high salary and you can attract and guide children towards Islam!” I replied: “They weren’t attracted to me; they were attracted to the true God!” 19. The interrogator made fun of my words and even the colour of my skin. 20. That night, they took mugshots of all of us who had been arrested. We hadn’t had dinner, and they interrogated us until morning. In the early morning, we were taken to our cells with great fatigue. Sara, Bita [another woman] and I were in the same cell. The floor was carpeted, and there was a refrigerator, TV, some books, a toilet, and a shower. They gave each of us three blankets, but it was cold so we asked for more, but they didn’t give them to us. The blankets were also very dirty and smelly. 21. It was a day or two later when they took us, one by one, to the prosecutor, Mr Aghili, who explained our charges. The accusations against us were: “Propaganda against the holy regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran through membership in anti-regime groups by forming groups and recruiting members with the coordination of foreign elements to propagate evangelical Christianity” and, to increase the pressure on us, because several men and women had been arrested while we were together in a home, they added the charge of “illegitimate relations, though not adultery”. 22. The interrogators took us for interrogations at night, when our minds were very tired, and they interrogated us until midnight or early in the morning. I had heard before that girls were raped in prison, and I was very afraid and prayed about it. Once, during an interrogation, I heard Ramin moaning as he was being tortured. The interrogator threatened me that if I didn’t answer his questions, he would do the same to me. When I was taken back to the cell, Bita and Sara said they had also heard Ramin’s cries from the cell. I found out later that even Atena, Arina and Nasrin [another lady], who were in the cell next to us, had heard them. 23. Once when they were transferring me to my cell after an interrogation, I suddenly saw some officers looking at four computers and saw they had placed cameras in our rooms and were watching us. I was very upset, because they could see us even when we went to the bathroom or changed our clothes. 24. I had a backpack with me, and with the pen and paper in my bag we wrote down the parts of our story that we wanted to make sure we all agreed on, so they wouldn’t hear us. On our first day in the cell, we prayed together and sang songs, and asked God to protect the Christians we were serving. There were also verses from the Bible on the wall of the cell, written by Christians who had been arrested before. We were encouraged and strengthened by reading them. We were consoled to think that other people had trodden this path before us, and endured the same experiences. We also used my pen to write other verses from the Bible on the wall. One day, they took us to the women’s prison to take our fingerprints, and then brought us back. 25. Then after four days in the detention centre, we were transferred to the general ward of the women’s prison, and they took my backpack away from me. It was very cold, and upon arrival we had to shower, wash our clothes and, after borrowing clothes from other prisoners, wait in the cold for our own clothes to dry. Due to the dirty environment of the cells in “Alef-Ta” ward, Sara had contracted head-lice. They cut her hair very short and took her to quarantine [an area of the prison where prisoners are taken before they are transferred or released]. The rest of us – Bita, Arina, Atena, Nasrin and I – were transferred to the general women’s ward. Most of us stayed awake till morning, with fear and trembling, because there were dangerous criminals in that ward who raped girls and younger women in the prison. The next day, when the interrogators learned that we had been transferred to the general ward, they were very angry [that we had been able to mingle with the other prisoners] and ordered that we be taken to quarantine. 26. The quarantine room was square, with a toilet and two bathrooms. It was a very cold and small room. The radiator we were sleeping next to was leaking, and the water spilled onto our things. The space where we could sleep was so small that we had to sleep on our sides and couldn’t move. There were some drug addicts there, who were in a very bad way and didn’t have any concern for personal hygiene. But us all being together in quarantine had an advantage, as we could sing songs together, pray, and even play little games. 27. One of the prisoners with us in quarantine was a lady named Mrs Golkar, who had been sentenced to death. Because of her kind heart, the prisoners called her “the mother of prison”, or “Maman Goli”. The first day she saw us was her daughter’s birthday, so she was sad and cried. I had been wearing three silver-hoop earrings when I went into the prison and had given one to Sara on her birthday, when we were in A.T., and now I gave one to Maman Goli to give to her daughter when they next met. Maman Goli was also very kind to us. We weren’t really allowed to go outside, but because Maman Goli was in charge in quarantine, she would allow us to go outside for a few minutes each day. In addition, she got hold of some medicine and fruit juice for Nasrin, who had a cold, and made it possible for each of us to call our families and talk with them, even if only very briefly. 28. They continued to take us for interrogations during our time in quarantine, and tried to convert me back to Islam. They said: “If you repent and return to Islam, we’ll release you!” I refused, and defended my faith in Christianity. They threatened me and my family, but I refused to sign the sheet they put in front of me, on which they wanted me to say that I repented. I refused to do this every day until my release. 29. When I was in prison, one of the interrogators called my family and said: “Your daughter has been sentenced to death!” My mother was shocked to hear this and, because of her weak heart, her condition worsened and she had to go to hospital. My brothers and sisters came to the prison every day to follow up on my case, but I was able to meet my sisters only once, on the day before I was released. 30. We used to pay the mortgage payments on our house every month, and the deed hadn’t yet been transferred to my mother’s name [so she couldn’t submit it for bail]. And because my brother also received only a low salary, they initially wouldn’t accept his pay slip as a guarantee for my bail. But he was persistent and begged them to accept it, and eventually they did. My bail amount was 20 million tomans [around $5,000], and I was released on bail on 4 March 2013. Temporary release 31. Many Christians in our house-church were worried about my family’s reaction to my arrest, and whether they would continue to accept me after this incident, or not. But not only did they accept me back into the family, but my brother told the Ministry of Intelligence and other related offices in my defence: “If something bad happens to my sister, we’ll all become Christians!” One of the interrogators told him: “We arrested your sister in a group with other men, with whom she was having illicit relations.” My brother said: “If it’s true that my sister was found with some men, I am sure these were good men, and that my sister’s relationship with them was innocent and pure, because I know my sister well.” When my mother found out about the accusation of “illegitimate relations, though not adultery”, she said: “I can still hold my head up with pride, because I know that my daughter stood up for her faith and beliefs, and that these shameful labels won’t stick to her.” 32. After my release, the agents of the Ministry of Intelligence continued to follow me. They also summoned me twice for questioning at a residential house on Mokhaberat Street in Shahin Shahr, which didn’t have any signs outside to say what kind of building it was. Later I found out that they weren’t legally allowed to do this. There was an outbuilding in the yard, where they interrogated me about the [house-]church we had in Khuzestan. But I only gave them false information and names. 33. I was sure that they had installed a listening device in our home and were listening to our conversations because, sometimes, after conversations I’d had with my family they would call me and talk to me about these same conversations. 34. They harassed me a lot when I tried to get back the things they had confiscated from me. Every day I travelled from my home to this house in Shahin Shahr, or called the Ministry of Intelligence, trying to get my stuff back. One of the things I was desperate to get back was my mother’s bank card, which I had always looked after, and from which I would take out the money she received because of the death of my father, and give it to her. After six months, they finally returned these confiscated items to me. 35. Before our arrest, our pastor had asked us to write down the items at our homes that belonged to the church and, unfortunately, they had found this sheet in Ramin and Nasrin’s home. For this reason, the interrogator forced me to hand over the printer that was in our home to the Ministry of Intelligence. They considered the belongings of our church to be the property of the government, and said: “If you don’t hand over the printer, we’ll do whatever we want to you and your family!” They didn’t even return the video camera that had been in Nasrin and Ramin’s home and belonged to the church. Court 36. Our court hearing took place on 19 June 2013, in the first branch of the general court of the judiciary in Shahin Shahr, presided over by Judge [Jahanbakhsh] Ahmadi. 37. The judge asked me: “Who are you in contact with?” And: “Do you want to return to Islam?” I told him: “No, I am a Christian and I don’t want to return to Islam.” 38. Our verdict was issued on 18 July 2013. We were all part of the same case, and all of us were sentenced to one year in prison and a two-year ban on leaving the country. Abbas [Leila’s husband] and Sara went to Shahin Shahr Court to receive the verdict for us. Judge Ahmadi was in his office and told them: “I wanted to let you off, but the claimant in your case was the prosecutor’s office, so I had no choice; I had to issue a one-year prison sentence for all of you. Another group of Christians were arrested recently in Tehran, and they were sentenced to four years in prison. And you have up to 20 days to appeal, so you should try this.” 39. We did appeal, with the help of our lawyer, Mr Mehdi Jahanbakhsh Harandi, but on 5 April 2015 the verdict of the first court was upheld and finalised in the 14th branch of the Court of Appeal of Isfahan Province. Leaving Iran 40. Our case was heard at the Court of Appeal on 19 of February 2014, but I had already been forced to leave Iran by this time. I applied for refugee status on 28 February 2014. 41. My mother became a Christian after my release, and even now, from time to time, the Ministry of Intelligence calls my family and threatens them. After I left Iran, agents of the Ministry of Intelligence went to our house twice, at 6.30am or 7am, to arrest me. My mother protested: “You are coming to our house to terrorise us, even though you know Sahar has left the country!” 42. My mother died in 2018, and I wasn’t able to see her even once after leaving the country, as the doctor wouldn’t let her fly because of her heart disease. My mother was very selfless and kind, and I really struggled after her death. But, thank God, my Christian friends have supported me a lot, and with their help I have continued my Christian activities. Currently, I help with the children and young people, and also the women of the church in the city where I live. 43. In 2019, I married Parham, who had also been active in the Church in Iran. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, we couldn’t hold a wedding reception that we had planned for the next year, but getting married and starting a new chapter of life brought me a sense of freshness and hope, because I was very sad after my mother’s death. 44. Since 2013, I have been in an uncertain situation. Although my asylum application was accepted, due to the recent US immigration laws, our case, like that of many other refugees, has remained stagnant.
A diversity of voices in and from Iran 20 October 2022 Analysis This article, written by Article18’s Fred Petrossian, was first published on the website of Get The Trolls Out, which campaigns against anti-religious hate speech in the European media. As protests in Iran continue and supporters hold rallies around the world in solidarity with the Iranian people, Fred is documenting the new and old struggles, including a mass protest scheduled to take place on 22 October in Berlin. (Illustration: Assad Binakhahi, Germany) Iranian Christian converts in Europe: persecution there, exclusion here The “I am A Christian too” campaign was launched by a group of Iranian Christian converts living in Stockholm, Sweden, in October 2020 in order to pursue policy change in Sweden and Iran. “I Am A Christian Too” is a loosely organised but sustained campaign among a group of Iranians who share Christianity as their core belief and set their main goal of being recognised as refugees by the Swedish government. Christian converts (Muslims who have converted to Christianity), unlike ethnic Christians (Armenians and Assyrians), are not recognised in Iran’s Constitution. The Islamic Republic has therefore essentially transformed millions of citizens, like Christian converts, Baha’is, and followers of the Yarsan faith, who belong to the unrecognised religious minorities, into “ghosts”, deprived of basic human rights. As of July 2022, this campaign has held almost 50 gatherings in Stockholm, making it the most persistent street movement among Iranian religious minorities and even Iranian asylum-seekers in the diaspora. You can read more here and here. Solidarity rallies in Europe support Iranian protesters (Photo: Fred Petrossian) The stories of brave Iranian protesters, especially women, defying the Islamic Republic’s security forces and fighting for their freedom have made headlines around the world. There have also been many sad photographs of murdered teenagers, like Nika Shakarami. In addition, on Saturday 1 October, thousands of Iranians in the diaspora, from different walks of life, beliefs, and ethnic origin, demonstrated shoulder-to-shoulder in more than 150 cities around the world, including many European cities, such as London, Brussels, Paris, Stockholm, and Zurich. “Women, life, freedom”, “Mahsa Amini”, “Down with the dictator”, and “We do not want the Islamic Republic” were among the slogans chanted in rallies in Europe and beyond. The original protests in Iran were triggered after Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, 22, died while being detained by the country’s morality police for allegedly violating the hijab rules on 16 September, as parts of her hair were visible underneath her headscarf. Demonstrations go on in Iran and around the world, including many European cities. There is a rare or even unique feeling of national unity and togetherness in the air, both in Iran and in demonstrations outside the country. You can read more here. “Iranvisibilia”, a podcast with testimonies from Iran, will also soon be available at https://mvoicesiran.com/.
Second Christian convert unexpectedly ‘pardoned’, released from Evin Prison 19 October 2022 News A second Christian convert has been unexpectedly pardoned and released from Tehran’s Evin Prison just a day after the release of a 61-year-old man who had spent nearly five years in prison. Fariba Dalir‘s release last night follows that of Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh the night before, which itself came just two days after a “hellish night” of fire and gunfire at the notorious prison. Fariba spent over 200 days in detention, including more than a month in solitary confinement after her initial arrest in July last year. She had been in Evin Prison since Easter Saturday. Fariba, her husband Soroush, and daughter Arezoo, who is in her early twenties, are said to be overjoyed at their reunion, while also recognising the increasingly difficult and dangerous predicament facing those who remain in the prison. Reacting to the news, Article18’s director, Mansour Borji, said: “While we celebrate the recent release of Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh and Fariba Dalir, we remain deeply concerned for the health and security of all those who remain in Evin Prison, including at least 10 Christian prisoners of conscience. Article18 knows of at least 10 Christian prisoners of conscience still in Evin, and a further eight in other prisons across the country, or in exile. The real figure is also likely to be higher, as not all cases are publicly reported. Mr Borji added: “It is not difficult to assume that the recent releases may be an attempt by the Iranian government to deflect attention from the disturbing reports of the events at Evin on Saturday night, which claimed several lives. And while to-date over 9,000 protesters are said to have been arrested and more than 800 detainees have been identified, Iran’s overcrowded prisons remain incredibly high-risk places to be.”
British-Iranian bishop writes prayers for Iran 18 October 2022 News Photo: Twitter @churchofengland British-Iranian Anglican bishop Guli Francis-Dehqani has written and recorded prayers for the Iran, as protests continue in the wake of the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. Bishop Guli is the daughter of the first Persian Anglican bishop of Iran, Hassan Dehqani-Tafti, and sister of Bahram Dehqani-Tafti, who was among the at least eight Iranian Christians killed in the early years of the Islamic Republic. Bishop Guli was forced to flee Iran, along with the rest of her family, shortly after the 1979 Islamic revolution. The two prayers she has written were published on Friday on the website of the Church of England. You can read them below and also watch the bishop reading them, in Persian, in this video. A prayer for the people of Iran Lord Jesus Christ,We hold before you the people of Iran.May the tears shed in your earthly lifebe balm for all who weep,and may the prayers of your pilgrimagegive strength to all who suffer;for your mercy’s sake.Amen. Prayer for Anglicans in Iran Ever-living God,whose Church is strengthened by the blood of the martyrs,we thank you for the witness of the Anglican Church in Iranand pray for the faithful remnant who endure.In suffering, sustain them;in fragility, nurture them;in isolation, surround them with your love. May we see your presence in the small and vulnerable, for the bruised reed you do not break, nor the smouldering wick snuff out.Renew us, and the persecuted Church, in the message of hopeshown in the death and resurrection of your Son,Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen
‘UN must urgently investigate Iran’s ruthless protest crackdown’ 18 October 2022 News Article18 has joined with 42 other civil-society groups in calling on the UN Human Rights Council to “urgently establish an independent, investigative, reporting and accountability mechanism” in response to the Iran regime’s ruthless crackdown on ongoing nationwide protests. The joint letter came just three days after the US Commission on International Religious Freedom urged the Biden administration to spearhead a UN enquiry into the crackdown. “Without concerted collective action by the international community that goes beyond statements of condemnation and long-standing calls directed at the Iranian authorities to conduct investigations, countless more men, women and children risk being killed, maimed, tortured, sexually assaulted and thrown behind bars, and evidence of grave crimes risks disappearing,” we say. The brutal response to the protests, which continue more than four weeks after the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, have led to the deaths of more than 200 protesters, including at least 23 children, the letter notes. Meanwhile, the Iranian authorities have repeatedly ignored the calls of senior UN figures to cease the unlawful use of force. “Simply put, all avenues for accountability are closed at the domestic level,” we say. Therefore, meaningful action by the international community is both necessary and “long overdue”, the letter concludes. You can read the full text of our letter, and list of signatories, below. October 17, 2022 UN Human Rights Council must hold a special session on Iran We are writing to raise our deep concerns about the Iranian authorities’ mobilization of their well-honed machinery of repression to ruthlessly crackdown on current nationwide protests. The United Nations Human Rights Council should act as a matter of urgency by holding a special session and — given the gravity of crimes under international law and other serious human rights violations committed in Iran and the prevailing systemic impunity — establish an independent, investigative, reporting and accountability mechanism. The recent protests were sparked by outrage at the death in custody of Mahsa (Jina) Amini, a 22 year old woman from the Kurdish minority, on 16 September 2022 days after being arrested by the “morality” police for not complying with the country’s discriminatory and abusive compulsory veiling laws, which perpetuate violence against women and girls in Iran and strip them of their right to dignity and bodily autonomy. The focus of the protests has since quickly expanded to broader grievances and encompassed demands for fundamental political and social change towards protection and fulfilment of human rights.Evidence gathered by a number of the undersigned organizations shows a harrowing pattern of Iranian security forces deliberately and unlawfully firing live ammunition and metal pellets, including birdshot, at protesters and bystanders including children. Undersigned organizations are documenting growing numbers of protesters and bystanders killed, with some already reporting over 200 deaths, including at least 23 identified children, in Sistan and Baluchistan, Kurdistan and other provinces throughout Iran, as well as hundreds of others injured to date in the ongoing crackdown. The actual numbers, though, are likely to be much higher and growing. Since 18 September 2022, over one thousand protesters, human rights defenders, civil society activists, journalists, university students and school children have been arbitrarily arrested and detained, some already charged with “acting against national security.” This cycle of deadly repression in the context of protests has become alarmingly familiar in recent years. During previous waves of mass protests including in December 2017-January 2018, November 2019, July 2021, November 2021 and May 2022, a number of our organizations documented similar widespread patterns of crimes under international law and other serious human rights violations, such as unlawful killings resulting from unwarranted use of force, including lethal force, mass arbitrary arrests and detention, enforced disappearances, torture and other ill-treatment, and sentencing individuals to lengthy prison terms and death following grossly unfair trials. Without concerted collective action by the international community that goes beyond statements of condemnation and long-standing calls directed at the Iranian authorities to conduct investigations, countless more men, women and children risk being killed, maimed, tortured, sexually assaulted and thrown behind bars, and evidence of grave crimes risks disappearing. The Iranian authorities have repeatedly ignored the calls of the UN Secretary General, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, multiple UN Special Procedures, UN Member States and the UN General Assembly to cease the unlawful use of force, including lethal force, against protesters and bystanders and to effectively investigate and prosecute those responsible for unlawful killings, torture and other ill-treatment. Simply put, all avenues for accountability are closed at the domestic level.This latest round of bloodshed in the context of protests in Iran is rooted in and fueled by this deep and longstanding pattern of systemic impunity for the most serious crimes under international law which, given the scale and severity of past and ongoing human rights violations, the UN Human Rights Council has not sufficiently addressed. In this context, we urge the UN Human Rights Council to hold a special session as a matter of urgency. At that session, the Council should establish an independent mechanism with investigative, reporting and accountability functions to address the most serious crimes under international law and other gross human rights violations committed in Iran, including in the context of successive waves of protest crackdowns. The mechanism should conduct investigations into such crimes and violations with a view to pursuing accountability, in particular where violations may amount to the most serious crimes under international law. The mechanism should be mandated and adequately resourced to gather and preserve evidence, and to share it with national, regional and international courts and administrative bodies that may have jurisdiction over crimes. Its public reporting should include analysis of patterns of crimes and violations and the identification of perpetrators.A mechanism with such functions is urgently needed to complement the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, given the gravity and scale of the crimes committed with absolute impunity in the country. The Special Rapporteur has underscored the urgency of “accountability with respect to long-standing emblematic events that have been met with persistent impunity, including the enforced disappearances and summary and arbitrary executions of 1988 and the protests of November 2019.” In his statement to the UN Third Committee in October 2021 and January 2022 report, the Special Rapporteur has reflected on “the structural impediments for accountability” and the “lack of any progress or political will to conduct investigations, let alone ensure accountability.” The Special Rapporteur has stressed that within Iran’s current “system of governance, it is clear that obtaining accountability for human rights violations becomes arbitrary at best and impossible at worst” and emphasized that “it becomes imperative that the international community uses other existing channels, including in international fora … to seek accountability…. Without the involvement of the international community, such grave violations will continue.”Many family members of human rights defenders have been threatened while the human rights defenders have been violently arrested and their houses raided. Human rights defenders and victims’ relatives are echoing growing frustration at the international community’s failure to take meaningful action to address successive waves of protest killings in Iran. The father of Milan Haghigi, a 21-year-old man killed by security forces on 21 September, said: “People expect the UN to defend us and the protesters. I, too, can condemn [the Iranian authorities], the whole world can condemn them but to what end this condemnation?” Meaningful action by the international community, in the form of the creation of an independent, investigative, reporting and accountability mechanism, is long overdue.Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in IranThe Advocates for Human RightsAll Human Rights for All in IranAmnesty InternationalArticle18Article 19Arseh SevomAssociation for the human rights of the Azerbaijani people in Iran (AHRAZ)Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)Baloch Activist CampaignBalochistan Human Rights Group (BHRG)Cairo Institute for Human Rights StudiesCenter for Human Rights in IranCentre for Supporters of Human RightsCIVICUSEnsemble Contre la Peine de MortFEMENAFreedom from TortureFront Line DefendersGlobal Centre for the Responsibility to ProtectGulf Center for Human RightsHaalvshHengaw Organization for Human RightsHuman Rights Activists in Iran (HRA)Human Rights WatchImpact IranInternational Commission of JuristsInternational Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)Iran Human RightsIran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC)Justice for IranKurdistan Human Rights Association-Geneva (KMMK-G)Kurdistan Human Rights NetworkKurdpa Human Rights OrganisationLeague for the Defence of Human Rights in IranMiaan GroupMinority Rights Group International (MRG)RasankSiamak Pouzand Foundation6Rang (Iranian Lesbian and Transgender Network)Women’s International League for Peace and FreedomWorld Organisation against Torture (OMCT)
Christian convert freed after nearly five years in Evin Prison 17 October 2022 News Christian prisoner of conscience Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh has been freed after nearly five years in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison. Nasser was told earlier today that he had been “pardoned”. He called his family soon afterwards to tell them the surprising news and to ask them to collect him from the prison. He is now finally safely back at home, and hopes to see his elderly mother tomorrow. Nasser had been in Evin Prison since January 2018 and was serving a 10-year prison sentence for “acting against national security” by belonging to a house-church. During his nearly 2,000 days in prison, Nasser filed several requests for a retrial or parole, as well as writing numerous open letters querying how membership of a house-church could be considered an “action against national security”. But these petitions, and even an emotional plea last year from his elderly mother for her son’s release, all fell on deaf ears. Until finally, today, 440 days after his mother’s video, Nasser was told he had been “pardoned”. Nasser’s release comes just two days after chaotic scenes in the prison, as fire spread through Ward 7, claiming the lives of at least four prisoners. Gunfire was also heard, while projectiles leading to explosions were hurled into the prison from outside. None of the dozen Christian prisoners of conscience were hurt, but one family member told Article18: “It was a hellish night for us. We were completely in the dark about what was happening. Then, when we were finally able to speak [to our loved one], we heard the sound of shooting and then the phone was disconnected. We wept until the morning.” The male Christian prisoners – some of whom are of advanced years, including a 64-year-old with Parkinson’s disease – were also forced into desperate action to prevent the fire from spreading to their ward. It is not clear whether there is any direct link between the fire and the release of Nasser, who is 61 years old and has experienced several health issues during his long imprisonment. Article18’s director, Mansour Borji, welcomed the news, but added: “Nasser was arbitrarily arrested and detained, falsely charged, unjustly imprisoned for almost five years, and inhumanly refused a chance for retrial, furlough and medical attention.” Nasser was…▪️arbitrarily arrested & detained, ▪️falsely charged,▪️unjustly imprisoned (for almost 5-yrs), and▪️inhumanly refused a chance for retrial, furlough & medical attention. So we welcome his release!One piece of good news after a long time! #Place2Worship https://t.co/hDx8x2KzWq— Mansour Borji (@mansourborji) October 17, 2022
‘Hellish night’ as Evin Prison set on fire, gunshots heard 17 October 2022 News A fire at a Tehran prison housing hundreds of political prisoners, including a dozen Christians, caused widespread alarm on Saturday night, claiming at least four lives. Many more are believed to have been injured as a result of the fire at Evin Prison, whose cause has not yet been established, while it is widely believed that the state TV’s official death toll – at first reported at 40, before hastily being reduced to four – is likely to be well short of the true figure. The sound of gunfire and videos showing projectiles being thrown into the prison, resulting in explosions, increased alarm among all those with loved ones inside. At least 12 #Christians and hundreds of other innocent prisoners of conscience are held in #Evin prison where there are reports of gunshots and widespread fire. If any one harmed, we will hold accountable all those responsible for their safety.#MahsaAmini#IranRevolution pic.twitter.com/bcg5jMd5dy— Mansour Borji (@mansourborji) October 15, 2022 A family member of one imprisoned Christian told Article18: “It was a hellish night for us. We were completely in the dark about what was happening. Then, when we were finally able to speak, we heard the sound of shooting and then the phone was disconnected. We wept until the morning.” The chaotic scenes took place as protests continue across the country in the wake of the death in custody of a young Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for “improper” wearing of her headscarf. In the four weeks since the 22-year-old’s death, protests have raged across the country, and they continue still, amounting to what many believe to be the greatest threat to the Islamic Republic since its inception 43 years ago. The latest flashpoint came on Saturday night, when footage of a burning Evin Prison – Iran’s most notorious jail – was shared widely on social media, causing outrage and deep concern for the many prisoners held there only because their beliefs deviate from those of the state. Among them are a dozen Christian prisoners of conscience – the majority held in Ward 8 of the prison, with the others in the women’s ward. And while the fire was publicly reported to have centred on Ward 7 of the prison, Article18’s source said the inmates of Ward 8 were forced into desperate action to prevent the fire from spreading to their ward. “In the morning, our relative called us to tell us that he was OK,” our source said. “But he also said most of the prisoners in Ward 8 had been helping to put out the fire with every tool they could get their hands on – from buckets and containers, to water hoses.” None of the Christian prisoners of conscience – including a 64-year-old man with advanced Parkinson’s disease and several others in their 50s and 60s – were harmed, but at least four other prisoners died and many more were filmed being taken away on buses to an unknown location. State media claimed the fire was caused by a fight between prisoners in a clothes workshop in the prison, but some of the prisoners who who were able to call home reported that guards were shooting into the wards, and that some of the prisoners from Ward 8 had been transferred elsewhere because it was feared they may start a riot.
An Iranian Christian’s response to the Mahsa Amini protests 7 October 2022 Analysis A version of this article, written by Article18’s director, Mansour Borji, first appeared on the website of The Tablet, under the headline, ‘The people of Iran have spoken – they want this regime gone’. A paint-splattered Iranian embassy. It began with our teenage daughter’s invitation to join her at a protest organised in response to the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old women who had been detained by Iran’s so called “Morality Police” for allegedly wearing her headscarf too loosely. The night before the protest, our younger daughter, who is nine, asked if we could make our own posters, so we paid a visit to the local shop and got all she needed. As I was helping her to creatively put her own ideas onto the board, I asked what she was going to protest against. To my amazement she described her understanding of the situation, why it made her upset, and what gave her hope for change. I felt proud of her, not only for understanding the issue but also for not surrendering to defeatism. Mansour with his daughter. First lesson learnt: Children are more insightful than we give them credit for. Give them a perspective to see life from, and they will probably make wiser decisions than you did! Two Sundays ago, after church, we as a family joined hundreds of other protesters in front of the Iranian Embassy in London. Flags, banners, posters and painted faces were everywhere. Anti-riot police had cordoned off the embassy and did their best to maintain order and protect the building, as well as the protesters. It was so refreshing to see a lot of church members, as well as church leaders, among the protesters. We were there because we were outraged at the unending and increasingly unbearable injustices committed by Iran’s rulers, and felt we had to do something about it. After prayer and reflection, social-media posts and hashtags, issuing statements and signing petitions, taking part in this demonstration was the next expression of our moral outrage. Second lesson learnt: As Rev John Stott, who in 2005 was listed among Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People”, once said: “What is outrageous is the absence of outrage. How can we tolerate what God finds intolerable?” True Christian spirituality covers all of reality. After a couple of hours, we moved with the crowd through London’s Hyde Park towards the office of the representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader. People watched the marching crowd from double-decker buses, inside their cars and outside the restaurants and pubs. Some looked confused, others noticeably annoyed, but most seemed to admire us as they listened to the chants of “Freedom for Iran” and “Down with the dictator”. But it wasn’t all peaceful, and we weren’t smiling the entire time – especially when a large group of radical Islamists attacked us near Hyde Park’s Speakers’ Corner. As stones, tree branches, water bottles and even a crutch were thrown towards us over the police lines, clashes seemed inevitable. My wife and I were glad our daughters were not with us at that moment, and were safely inside a car on their way to meet us at the final protest location. A few moments later, when the violence had subsided, I thought of those parents in Iran having to choose whether to allow their children to face Iran’s brutal security forces as they demand the return of their stolen freedoms. There, the police do not protect peaceful protesters but use live ammunition and fatal force to protect the corrupt system that has ruled Iran for nearly 44 years. Third lesson learnt: You can only truly “remember those who are in prison” or under oppression, as we are called to do in the Bible, if you begin to feel as though you yourself were bound and suffering with them. A boy on his mother’s shoulders holds a teddy bear in one hand and punches the air with the other. As we made our way through the beautiful streets of London, I saw a young child, perhaps eight years old, on his mother’s shoulders, holding a teddy bear in one hand and punching the air with the other, shouting with other protesters at the top of his voice: “Say her name, say her name: Mahsa Amini!” As we approached The Islamic Centre of England, which acts as the UK office of Iran’s Supreme Leader, I remembered that just last year they had applied for, and been granted, more than £100,000 of British taxpayers’ money under the Covid-19 furlough scheme! This same centre held a candlelit vigil in 2020 to mourn the death of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the IRGC (designated a terrorist force by the US), after his killing by a US air strike. The huge pay-off they received seems even more preposterous when you know that the Supreme Leader, according to Reuters, controlled a financial empire worth an estimated $95 billion in 2013. By 2019, his wealth was estimated at $200 billion! And here is the painful truth: around the same time that they received this generous grant from British taxpayers’ pockets, Iranian Christians, who are imprisoned for worshipping in private homes, were asking for their legally guaranteed right to be given a #Place2Worship, a simple demand that has still not been granted. Fourth lesson learnt: As we remember the victims of violence and injustice, we need to realise that Iranian mullahs are not the only culprits in this. We need to direct our outrage at everything and anything that feeds and sustains this evil. We need to keep Western politicians accountable for decades of flirtations with the Ayatollahs, and their contribution to the making of this monster regime. We should ask them to abandon their shortsighted foreign policies towards Iran, which is currently focused on throwing Tehran yet another lifeline by offering them a fresh nuclear deal. This may be a quick, albeit temporary, fix for the world’s energy crisis, and help win the next elections, but meanwhile the Ayatollahs’ regime will continue to brutalise its own people, while also posing a threat to rest of the world. The people of Iran have spoken. They want this regime gone. They want what this regime is inherently unable to offer them – starting from women’s rights and ending with life itself, and the true freedom that every soul is created for.