Tag: yamani in iran

Six Members of Yamani Religious Group Arrested in Izeh

Posted on by Sara
Religious Minorities
Ansar Imam Mehdi, yamani in iran

Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – After a month of interrogations, six citizens arrested by security agents in the city of Izeh on September 8th have been accused of “contact with the ‘Mahdaviat’ religious group” and transferred to Izeh prison in the southwestern province of Khuzestan.

HRANA has identified the arrestees as Moslem Asadzadi, Sajjad Asadzadi, Abdollah Kavoosi, Habib Mohammadi, Peyman Andaveh, and Ali Ahmadi. A source close to the matter told HRANA that all six were members of a minority religious group called “Ansar Imam Mehdi” and their homes were searched upon their arrests.

“One of the people arrested was an 18-year-old,” the source said. “After one month of scrambling to learn about their whereabouts, we were informed this week that they’ve been transferred to prison and that a bail has been set.”

The source added that the wait has been difficult for their families. “These people were arrested for their faith and for supporting a religious movement,” they said.

Ansar Imam Mehdi is considered a sect of a larger Iranian religious movement called the Yamani faith. Yamanis are devotees of their spiritual leader Ahmad al-Hasan Yamani, who claims to be in contact with the 12th Shiite Imam.

The 12th Imam, known as Mehdi or Mahdi, is an eschatological figure who Shiites believe to be alive, hidden, and biding time to return and restore Islamic utopia. In recent years, many individuals claiming to be in contact with Mehdi were met with intolerance by Iranian authorities. Such claims run counter to the ideology of the Iranian authorities and have provoked the security apparatus to appoint divisions that specialize in quelling belief groups like the Yamanis.

HRANA reported earlier this year on crackdowns on Yamani followers in Torbat-Heydarieh and Qom.

Yamani Followers Detained in Holy City of Qom

Posted on by admin-hr
Prisoners, Religious Minorities
iran human rights, religious minorities in iran, yamani in iran

Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – As part of a crackdown on an alternative religious movement called “Yamani”, at least five more of its members were recently arrested in Qom and taken to an undisclosed location.

Ali Akbar Jokar, a Yamani devotee, was arrested on August 24th; one day later, at least four more members of the group were detained. A source close to the group disclosed the identities of two of these individuals to HRANA, Abbas Fathieh and Sadiq Doustkaam. The remaining two have yet to be identified. Jokar, Fathieh, and Doustkaam were reportedly detained by brute force and physically assaulted while in Qom, central Iran, home to a prominent Shiite Seminary and several holy shrines.

As of the date of this report, authorities have not responded to inquiries from the detainee’s families with their whereabouts.

HRANA previously reported on crackdowns on Yamani supporters in Torbat-e Heydarieh.

Believers of the Yamani faith revolve around their leader, Ahmad al-Hasan Yamani, who claims to be in contact with the Shiites’ 12th Imam. The 12th Imam, known as Mehdi or Mahdi, is an eschatological figure who Shiites believe to be alive, hidden, and biding time to return and restore Islamic utopia. In recent years, many individuals claiming to be in contact with Mehdi were met with intolerance by Iranian authorities. Such claims run counter to the ideology of the Iranian authorities and have provoked the security apparatus to appoint divisions that specialize in quelling belief groups like the Yamanis.