(Article 18) — An Iranian news agency linked to the Revolutionary Guard Corps has reported the arrest of a “network” of Christians in “several provinces” for “creating moral deviations” and “promoting [religious] conversion.” According to the report, published by Fars News Agency on Saturday, the “Zionist” group was “dismantled” in a coordinated operation, though there […]

(Article18) — Iran has denied systematically persecuting Christians, in response to a formal enquiry by six senior UN rights experts. In a letter dated Nov. 11 but only made public after Iran failed to respond within the 60-day deadline, the experts – including the special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Ahmed Shaheed, and […]

(Article18) — There are renewed fears over a parliamentary bill that threatens to facilitate the further repression of Iran’s religious minorities. … The bill proposes additions to articles 499 and 500 of the Islamic Penal Code — already two of the most commonly used laws in cases against Christians — which would provide law enforcers […]

(Article 18) — Two Iranian Christian converts have overturned on appeal a combined 10-year prison sentence for their leadership of a house-church. Aziz Majidzadeh, known as Andreas, and another convert who cannot be named, were sentenced to four and six years in prison respectively in July — a ruling that was not made public at […]

(Article18) — The UN’s General Assembly has passed a resolution expressing “serious concerns” about the situation of human rights in Iran, including “severe limitations” and “increasing restrictions” on religious freedom. The resolution, passed yesterday by 79 votes to 32, with 64 abstentions, calls on Iran to “eliminate, in law and in practice, all forms of […]

(Article18) — Four Christian converts have been sentenced to a combined 35 years in prison. Mehdi Akbari, Fatemeh Sharifi and Simin Soheilinia were given 10 years, and Mehdi Roohparvar five, all under the same charge of “acting against national security by forming a house-church.” … Very little is known about their case, but Article18 has […]

(Article18) — Imprisoned Christian convert Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh has been informed that his third request for a retrial has been rejected. Nasser, who is 59 years old, is serving a 10-year prison sentence in Tehran’s Evin Prison because of his membership of a house-church, for which he was convicted in July 2017 of “acting against […]

(Article18) — Twelve Christian homes were raided by intelligence agents on Wednesday in a coordinated operation in Fardis, west of Tehran, at around 9am. None of the Christians were arrested, but many of their personal belongings were confiscated – including phones, laptops, Bibles, Christian literature and anything else to do with Christianity – and they […]

(Article18) — One hundred and twenty lawyers and activists have written an open letter to the head of the judiciary in Iran, asking him to overturn a court’s decision to remove a two-year-old girl from her adoptive parents because they are Christian converts. Sam Khosravi and his wife Maryam Falahi’s appeal against the ruling, issued […]

(Article 18) — Lydia was just three months old when she was adopted by Iranian Christian converts Sam Khosravi and wife Maryam Falahi. Now, just one month before her second birthday, a court has ruled she must be taken away from them, as Sam and Maryam – who are currently appealing against convictions related to […]