The brother-in-law of a Christian convert who remains detained nearly a month after her arrest says he fears his sister-in-law may carry the psychological scars of her ordeal for the rest of her life.

Sam Khosravi told Morning Star News that his detained sister-in-law, Mojdeh Falahi, is “psychologically in a very bad condition, and only cries”.

Mojdeh has been detained since her arrest on 9 September at the prosecutor’s office in Shiraz, where she had gone to provide documents to secure the release for another detained Christian.

Sam, who has himself been living in hiding since a judge ordered that his adopted daughter must be removed from his care because he and his wife had become Christians, confirmed that Mojdeh is being detained in the Pelak-e 100 detention centre, which is under the jurisdiction of Iran’s intelligence ministry.

Mojdeh’s mother was able to visit her briefly on Monday for just the second time since her detention, Sam said, but Mojdeh was not able to speak freely.

“We do not know what exactly has happened to her [during her detention] because she was being monitored [during the visit],” he said. “We worry and wonder why they have kept her for such a long time.

“Mojdeh’s mother goes to the court every day to pursue the case and asks the judge to release her. She went to the court [on Monday], and after a lot of begging, the judge allowed her to see Mojdeh.”

Sam told Morning Star News he believes the primary reason for his sister-in-law’s detention is to “break” her, explaining how he knows one Christian who after their release didn’t feel able to enter a church for years, and another who was told by guards that the screams he could hear from another cell were those of his wife as she was raped repeatedly. 

“It’s all about humiliation,” he said. “There will be things in their mind and heart they will never get over.”

Sam added that he didn’t know why Mojdeh is being held for so long, but expects she is being pressured to provide information about other Christians. However, he said she would not have much information, as she is not in a leadership position at any church.

Sam added that Mojdeh’s family were told by Iranian officials that they would be able to visit her for longer if they encouraged her to provide them with more information, but they refused.

To date, Mojdeh’s mother has been able to see her daughter for a total of just eight minutes, across two visits, Sam said, adding that he also worries about the mental state of his mother-in-law. 

“Her situation is so bad,” he said. “She has become like a person with Alzheimer’s. She’ll do something once, forget and then do it again. She is under a lot of pressure.”