Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Christians with New Arrests and Sentences
Recent developments in Iran have highlighted an escalating situation for Christians, as authorities intensify their crackdown through arrests and detentions. Notably, the wife of an Iranian-Armenian pastor, already re-arrested for his religious activities, has now been placed in solitary confinement, raising international concerns.
The advocacy organization, Article 18, has reported that Lida Alexani, the 56-year-old wife of Pastor Joseph Shahbazian, was detained on April 12 and confined to solitary in Tehran’s Evin Prison. The charges against her remain unspecified. This action follows the re-arrest of Pastor Shahbazian on February 6, who was previously pardoned in September 2023 after being accused of acts against national security related to his house church activities.
Pastor Shahbazian’s initial incarceration lasted over a year before his release in 2023. Despite expectations for his release to coincide with the Iranian New Year and his mother’s recent death, he remains imprisoned despite a set bail of $7,000 (499 million tomans).
Within Evin Prison, Pastor Shahbazian has been transferred to Ward 4 after enduring nearly two months in solitary. He faces allegations of “propaganda against the regime” and other charges related to his church activities and funding through tithes and donations. These accusations, however, are contested by Shahbazian, who has been denied legal representation of his preference.
Furthermore, Iranian authorities have summoned several of Shahbazian’s acquaintances in efforts to extract incriminating evidence. “They tried to force us to cooperate with the MOIS by luring us and even threatening us,” one Christian reported to Article 18 under anonymity.
In addition to the Shahbazian case, the Iranian judiciary’s harsh stance was further exemplified when an appeals court upheld severe sentences for three Christian converts, including a pregnant woman, Narges Nasri. Arrested in November, Nasri, Abbas Soori, and Mehran Shamloui face over 40 years in prison collectively. Their charges include “membership of opposition groups” and “propaganda against the system.”
Nasri received the most severe sentence, totaling 16 years, partly for her social media support of the Women, Life, Freedom movement. Soori was sentenced to 15 years, and Shamloui received over 10 years, with additional social rights deprivations imposed on all three.
These developments align with an ongoing strategy by Iranian authorities to financially and socially undermine Christian communities, as indicated by Article 18’s annual report. This approach includes criminalizing typical Christian practices such as tithing.
The situation continues to garner international attention, as Iran ranks ninth on the World Watch List of countries where Christians face the most severe persecution.
This article was originally written by www.christianpost.com
