Security Forces Block Reconstruction of Ahl-e Haqq’s Shrine

HRANA News Agency – Iranian security forces have blocked the reconstruction of Sayed Farokh Shrine located in the village of Khobyaran Jalalvand, Kermanshah Province.  This shrine belongs to a religious minority commonly known as Ahl-e Haqq (Yarsan).

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), a group of Ahl-e Haqq followers funded and planned a construction project in order to rebuild the Shrine of Sayed Farokh, but Iranian security forces interfered and stopped their plans.

The Shrine of Sayed Farokh is located seventy kilometres south of Kermanshah.  Iranian government totally destroyed this shrine in the summer of 2011 and even prevented the local residents from collecting the debris.

The rural district of Jalalvand consists of approximately 60 villages. The vast majority of residents in these villages are the followers of Ahl-e Haqq. In recent years, Iranian government has prevented Jalalvand’s residents from practicing their faith in order to pressure them into embracing the denomination of Shi’a.

Reports indicate that pressure on the followers of Ahl-e Haqq has significantly increased.  Last week, another member of Ahl-e Haqq community, Sayed Mirza Hussani, was summoned to the Intelligence Agency and threatened to stop observing religious rituals belonging to his faith.

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Ahl-e Haqq’s Shrine in Kermanshah Destroyed

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.