Two Christian converts have been sentenced to 12 years each in prison on charges related to their possession of multiple copies of the Bible.  

Mehdi Rahimi, 49, and Kia Nourinia, 55, who have both fled the country, were sentenced in April at an Islamic Revolutionary Court in their home city of Tabriz, northwest Iran. 

On top of the prison sentences, they received fines equivalent to over $1,000 each, as well as being told they must pay the court 10 times the value of the Bibles in their possession. 

Judge Hassan Fathnezhad also sentenced them to 15 years each of deprivation of social rights, such as membership of any groups.

The two Christians’ homes were raided by Ministry of Intelligence agents back in November, as part of a wider operation that also targeted converts in the cities of Tehran, Mashhad and Bandar Abbas.

Mehdi, who is known as Samuel, was outside Iran when the raid took place on his home, and has not returned, while Kia fled the country following the raid.

The Christians were therefore tried in absentia, with the only evidence against them being the Bibles and other Christian literature found in their homes.

They were convicted under the amended Article 500 of “propaganda activity of deviant Christian Zionist beliefs opposed to the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, for which they were given 10 years each in prison; and of “smuggling prohibited goods”, under Articles 22 and 24, for which they received two years and the fines. 

In his verdict, the judge described the Bibles and other confiscated Christian literature as “deviant” and “misleading”.

He added that the confiscated books, as well as the Christians’ mobile phone and other electronic devices, would be given to the Ministry of Intelligence for their “research”.

Article18’s director, Mansour Borji, explained: “For the last few years, a new trend has emerged of Persian Bibles printed outside Iran being considered ‘smuggled goods’, to give Revolutionary Court judges additional weapons with which to penalise those involved in their distribution.” 

He added: “In this case, the judge has reached his decision solely based upon a report by Ministry of Intelligence officers and without any other form of investigations, as the defendants were not available for interrogation.”