Yesterday, November 10, Vahid Sabet, a Baha’i citizen residing in Shiraz, was arrested by security forces in this city and transferred to an undisclosed location.
HRANA has confirmed the identity of the individual as “Vahid Sabet, a Baha’i citizen residing in Shiraz.”
As of the time of this report, no information is available about his whereabouts or the charges against him.
Additionally, three other Baha’i citizens in Shiraz — Rozita Eslami, Elham Haghighatjou, and Vahid Masoumi — were also arrested yesterday by security forces. Following their detention, they were transferred to The Ministry of Intelligence’s detention facility, known as “House No 100.”
Baha’is are subjected to violations of their religious rights, comprising 82% of reports on infringements against religious minorities, according to HRA’s 2023 annual report.
The Baha’i faith is not recognized as a legitimate religion by Iranian authorities, leading to systematic and longstanding violations of the rights of Baha’is in the country. This includes the denial of their fundamental right to practice their religion, which constitutes a clear breach of both Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The United Nations covenant holds that every person has the right to freedom of religion, freedom of converting religion, as well as freedom of expression, individually or collectively; openly or secretly.
