Category: Religious Minorities

More Than Fifty Baha’i Citizens Imprisoned in Iran

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Religious Minorities
Afif Naimi, Ali Bakhesh Bazr Afkan, Ali Ehsani, Behfar Khanjani, Behnoosh Dadgar, Behrooz Tavakoli, Behruz Behamin, Dari Amri, Davar Nabilzadeh, Farhad Sadaghi, Farhod Eshtiagh, Fariba Kamalabadi, Farshid Badakhsh, Homman Bakhtavar, Houshang Fanaian, Jalayer Vahdat, Jamal Aldin Khanjani, Kamran Mortezaie, Kavyz Nozdehi, Kayvan Dehghani, Kiumars Bahin-A’in, Mahmoud Badavam, Mahvash Sabet, Malieh Roozbehe, Manijeh Nasrollahi, Mehran Bandi, Nahid Ghadiry, Nasrin Ghadiri, Navid Parvini, Negar Sobhanian, Noshin Khadem, Parvaneh Behamin, Payman Kashfi, Raha Sabet, Ramin Zibei, Rezita Vaseghi, Riyaz Sabhani, Sahba Rezvani, Saied Rezaie, Sama Norani, Samira Samiei, Shahnaz Talehi, Shamim Bahin-A’in, Sholeh Taief, Siamak Ayghani, Sima Eshraghi, Sima Rajabiyan, Sina Ravankard, Susan Tabyaniyan, Tareh Taghizadeh, Vahid Mahmoudi, Vahid Misaghian, Vahid Tizfahm

HRANA News Agency – While in various international gatherings and interviews conducted with foreign media, Iranian government officials continue to claim that no one is imprisoned in Iran because of their beliefs, according to official statistics, there are more than 50 Baha’i citizens either temporarily detained or serving prison terms in various cities throughout Iran.Additionally, there is at least the same number of Baha’i citizens waiting to be tried or sentenced in different cities all over the country.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), in various cities including Tehran, Karaj, Esfahan, Shiraz, Semnan, Mashhad, Urmia, Tabriz, Pars Abad, Ghaem Shahr, Babol, Sari, Kerman, Rafsanjan, Sanandaj, Yasuj and Kermanshah, there are a large number of Baha’i citizens who are in a legal state of limbo with their future uncertain.

All of these Baha’i citizens have been arrested, charged or convicted of propaganda against the regime by the virtue of their Baha’i faith or acting against the national security through attending religious Baha’i gatherings, membership in Baha’i organizations, managing Baha’i communities in cities or the whole country, or defending the rights of Baha’i citizens in Iran.

Baha’i citizens who are imprisoned in Iran’s official prisons or the detention centers operated by the Intelligence Agency include:

Evin Prison – Women’s Ward

1. Mahvash Sabet – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)
2. Fariba Kamalabadi – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)
3. Manijeh Nasrollahi – Sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison (Transferred from Semnan Prison)
4. Sahba Rezvani – Sentenced to 3 years and 1 months in prison (Transferred from Semnan Prison)
5. Susan Tabyaniyan – Sentenced to 1 ½ years in prison (Transferred from Semnan Prison)
6. Sholeh Taief – Sentenced to 1 year in prison (Transferred from Semnan Prison)

Evin Prison – Ward 350

7. Sama Norani – Sentenced to 1 year in prison
8. Payman Kashfi – Sentenced to 4 years in prisonArtin Ghazanfari – Sentenced to 1 year in prison

Evin Prison – Temporarily Detention / Interrogation

9. Kiumars Bahin-A’in – Transferred from Esfahan Prison
10. Shamim Bahin-A’in – Transferred from Esfahan Prison
11. Sina Ravankard – Transferred from Yasuj Prison
12. Parvaneh Behamin – Transferred from Yasuj Prison (A resident of Kata Village)
13. Behruz Behamin – Transferred from Shiraz Prison
14. Malieh Roozbehe (Roozkhosh) – Transferred from Shahravazlar in Fars Province
15. Behnoosh Dadgar – Transferred from Esfahan Prison
16. Kamran Mortezaie – Imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University
17. Vahid Mahmoudi – Imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University
18. Ramin Zibei – Imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University
19. Noshin Khadem – Imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University
20. Mahmoud Badavam – Imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University
21. Farhad Sadaghi – Imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University
22. Riyaz Sabhani – Probably imprisoned in relation to Baha’i Provisional University

Rajai Shahr Prison – Karaj

23. Jamal Aldin Khanjani – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)
24. Afif Naimi – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)
25. Behrooz Tavakoli – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)
26. Saied Rezaie – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)
27. Vahid Tizfahm – Sentenced to 20 years in prison (Previous member of Iranian Baha’i Governing Council)

Mashhad

28. Sima Eshraghi – Sentenced to 5 years in prison
29. Rezita Vaseghi – Sentenced to 5 years in prison (New case open)
30. Nahid Ghadiry – Sentenced to 5 years in prison (New case open)
31. Davar Nabilzadeh – Sentenced to 5 years in prison
32. Jalayer Vahdat – Sentenced to 5 years in prison
33. Kavyz Nozdehi – Sentenced to 2 years in prison
34. Sima Rajabiyan – Sentenced to 2 years in prison
35. Nasrin Ghadiri – Sentenced to 2 years in prison
36. Homman Bakhtavar – Sentenced to 2 years in prison
37. Dari Amri – Held in Mashhad Intelligence Agency Detention Center
38. Farhod Eshtiagh – Held in Mashhad Intelligence Agency Detention Center (Transferred from Esfahan Prison)

Semnan

39. Behfar Khanjani – Sentenced to 4 years in prison
40. Siamak Ayghani – Sentenced to 3 years in prison
41. Ali Ehsani – Sentenced to 2 years in prison

Khash

42. Mehran Bandi – Sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison (Transferred from Yazd Prison)

Sari

43. Tareh Taghizadeh – Sentenced to 22 months in prison
44. Samira Samiei – Sentenced to 6 months in prison

Amol

45. Houshang Fanaian – Sentenced to 4 years in prison

Shiraz

46. Raha Sabet – Sentenced to 4 years in prison

Esfahan

47. Vahid Misaghian – In temporary custody by Intelligence Agency
48. Shahnaz Talehi – In temporary custody by Intelligence Agency
49. Kayvan Dehghani – In temporary custody by Intelligence Agency
50. Navid Parvini – In temporary custody by Intelligence Agency
51. Negar Sobhanian – In temporary custody by Intelligence Agency
52. Farshid Badakhsh – In temporary custody by Intelligence Agency

Yasuj

53. Ali Bakhesh Bazr Afkan – Sentenced to 2 years and six months in prison

 

Baha’i Residents in Kata Village Arrested

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Religious Minorities
Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Yasuj

HRANA News Agency – During the last three weeks, Iranian security forces have raided Baha’i residents’ houses in the village of Kata and arrested a large number of them.The village of Kata is situated in northwestern Iran at the outskirts of Yasuj, the capital of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), during these raids, Iranian security officers have arrested a large number of Baha’i citizens without showing an arrest warrant.

It has been reported that a number of the detainee have been transferred to Shiraz while the whereabouts of the rest is unknown.

In the village of Kata, there are about fifty Baha’i families who are farmers living off the land.Since these families’ breadwinners have been arrested, their farmland and crops are left unattended and consequently being destroyed little by little.

 

Ahl-e Haqq’s Shrine in Kermanshah Destroyed

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Religious Minorities
Khobyaran Jalalvand, Sayed Farokh Shrine

HRANA News Agency – Last week, Iranian security forces destroyed the shrine of a religious minority commonly known as Ahl-e Haqq (Yarsan).The construction of this shrine was not yet complete when it was demolished.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Sayed Farokh Shrine is located in the village of Khobyaran Jalalvand in Kermanshah Province.At the time of its destruction, local residents had financed a reconstruction project to repair it.

Eyewitnesses have reported that the police refused to show a permit for the destruction of the shrine although the residents of Khobyaran asked to see the court order.

The rural district of Jalalvand consists of 55 villages.The vast majority of residents in these villages are the followers of Ahl-e Haqq.In recent years, Iranian government has pressured Jalalvand’s residents to denounce their faith.

 

Baha’i Situation in Marvdasht

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Religious Minorities
Marvdasht

April 28, 2010

HRA News Agency – Some officers of the Office of Amakin (Bureau of Premises—in charge of morality in public places and offices) of Marvdasht have recently contacted the Bahá’ís of Marvdasht asking them to disclose the names of working Bahá’ís. 

Continue reading “Baha’i Situation in Marvdasht”

Four Year Prison Sentence Upheld for Baha’i Citizen Houshang Fanaian

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Religious Minorities
Abdolfattah Soltani, Houshang Fanaian

HRANA News Agency – The Appeals Court has upheld a four-year prison sentence issued for Houshang Fanaian, a Baha’i citizen from the city of Amol in Mazandaran Province.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Houshang Fanaian has been locked up in Amol Prison for more than four months.Recently, on charges of attending a special Baha’i religious ceremony and membership in a Baha’i social group, he was sentenced to 3 years in prison.Additionally, Houshang Fanaian was convicted of acting against national security through his membership in Facebook and sentenced to one year in prison.

The Appeals Court, however, overturned a six month prison term issued by the lower court for insulting the Supreme Leader of Iran.

The decision by the Appeals Court was issued within two days after the request for review was filed.Although Houshang Fanaian’s attorney, Abdolfattah Soltani, had also asked to meet with the judge assigned to review the case, the Appeals Court denied this request and announced the verdict in absentia.

 

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Baha’i Citizen Loses Business Permit

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Religious Minorities
Siavash Deimi

April 30, 2010

 

HRA News Agency – In the city of Birjand Mr. Siavash Deimi lost his business permit on Monday 26 April when the government agents closed his appliance repair shop.

Mr. Deimi had run his business for several years but this year the authorities did not renew his permit for several months. He made several trips to the government offices to renew his permit with no success.  The government agents openly identified his belief in the Baha’i faith as the reason for their inaction.

 

Baha’i and Muslim Citizens Arrested

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Religious Minorities
Anisa Dehghani, Dari Amri, Thamin Emani, Zhayna Enayati

HRANA News Agency – On the evening of June 20, 2011, six citizens from the city of Esfahan were arrested.

According to the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, a few hours ago, six individuals including three Baha’i citizens were arrested in Esfahan.The Baha’i citizens have been identified to be Katie Nik-a’in, Thamin Emani and Zhayna Enayati.

It has also been reported that Thamin Emani is only sixteen years old.Security forces raided Thamin Emani’s house without showing a warrant and begin to beat and insult the residents when they demanded to see a court order.Thamin Emani was handcuffed after this violent confrontation.The charges or the whereabouts of those arrested are still unknown.

On June 20, 2011, another Baha’i citizen, Dari Amri, was also arrested in the city of Mashhad.Security forces raided Dari Amri’s house and seized her computer and camera.Additionally, two cell phones were also confiscated.One of the mobiles belonged to a guest who was present in the house during the raid.The security forces also searched the house of Dari Amri’s father-in-law.

On June 1, 2011, Anisa Dehghani, a Baha’i citizen, was arrested when she traveled from Esfahan to Mashhad.

During the winter of 2011, fifteen Baha’i citizens were arrested in Tehran, Esfahan, Mashhad, Kerman and Samnan.These individuals are all children’s rights activists and the members of a charity organization dedicated to helping children orphaned after the 2003 earthquake in Bam. During one of the arrests which took place in Kerman, three Muslim citizens who also helped this charity organization were detained.

In the last few weeks, fifteen other individuals were arrested in relation to a provisional university established for Baha’i citizens who are denied the opportunity to study at Iran’s higher education institutes.Farhad Amir, Dari Amri’s brother, and Zohreh Nik-a’in, Katie Nik-a’in’s sister, were amongst those detained for a few months and then released.

 

Baha’i Citizen, Riyaz Sobhani, Arrested

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Religious Minorities
Artin Ghazanfari, Jinoos Sobhani, Riyaz Sobhani

HRANA News Agency – Riyaz Sobhani, a Baha’i citizen residing in Tehran, was arrested this morning in his house.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), security forces entered Riyaz Sobhani’s house on June 15, 2011 at 6:30am without a warrant and arrested him without showing cause.

Riyaz Sobhani is the father of Jinoos Sobhani who was the former secretary at the Defenders of Human Rights Center.She was arrested once in 2008 and then again in 2009.

Artin Ghazanfari is Jinoos Sobhani’s husband who is currently locked up in Evin Prison, serving his one year sentence.After the events following Ashura protests which occurred on December 27, 2009, Artin Ghazanfari together with his wife and other Baha’i citizens were arrested in the same month.

Five Baha’i Citizen Arrested in Northern Iran

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Religious Minorities
Mahvand Laghai, Misagh Laghai, Nadia Farhadi, Pejman Nikonajad, Sharareh Nikonajad

HRANA News Agency – On Saturday and Sunday nights, June 4-5, 2011, security forces were dispatched to the houses of three Baha’i citizens in Babol and Babolsar, [Gilan Province], and arrested five individuals.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), equipped with guns and batons, intelligence agents accompanied by the police raided a Baha’i citizen’s house in Babolsar at 10:30pm while a special religious ceremony was being observed.Baha’i books and pictures were confiscated during this raid, and Misagh Laghai (76) and his daughter, Mahvand Laghai, were arrested.Additionally, using weapons such as batons and guns, security officers intimidated those attending this religious ceremony in order to force them to sign a commitment not to attend this Baha’i ritual again.

Furthermore, intelligence agents raided another Baha’i citizen’s house in Babolsar and after seizing religious books, pictures and a computer, arrested Nadia Farhadi (Imanian) and took her to an unknown location.Nadia Farhadi has been in charge of the provisional university for Baha’i citizens in Babolsar.

Similar to the above arrests, intelligence agents raided and searched another Baha’i citizen’s home on Sunday, June 5, 2011, and arrested the homeowners, Pejman Nikonajad and his wife, Sharareh Nikonajad.During this raid, the guests attending this Baha’i religious ceremony were beaten and forced to sign commitments not to attend such services again.