ISTANBUL, TURKEY — Three pastors in Iran are facing charges that could lead to the death penalty for activities in the house-church movement in an unprecedented crackdown on converts from Islam, according to human rights groups.
Iranian authorities recently filed charges against Silas Rabbani, assistant pastor in a Church of Iran group in Karaj, for “Mofsed-fel-arz” or “spreading corruption on Earth,” according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW). Authorities previously charged Behnam Irani, lead pastor of the church, with the same offense. The exact date when each pastor was charged is not publicly known, but information about each pastor leaked out of Iran the first week of this month and was reported by CSW, a freedom of religion advocacy group based in London.
Prior to charges being filed against Irani and Rabbani, the Sixth Branch of the Revolutionary Tribunal on Aug. 3 charged Abdolreza Ali-Haghnejad, another a leader in the Church of Iran movement in Karaj, with “Moharebeh,” or “warring against God.” A court has now changed the charge to “spreading corruption on Earth.”
The charges are “a clear escalation in Iran’s campaign against Persian Christians” and “an attempt to gain an apostasy conviction by other means,” CSW Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said in a press statement.
While both the “warring against God” and “spreading corruption on Earth” charges can carry the death penalty, human rights activists generally consider the latter to be more serious, as legal requirements for conviction are less strict than those of “warring against God.”
According to Iranian law, the death penalty can be handed down in “warring against God” cases only when a weapon is used in the commission of a crime. There are no such constraints on the other charge, though the distinction offers minimal protection as Iran has executed numerous people under the “warring against God” statute for acts that didn’t involve weapons.
“Warring against God” has historically been a catch-all, capital charge reserved for political opponents or dissident members of ethnic minorities in Iran, including Hashem Shabaninejad, an Arab-Iranian poet and human rights activist, said Khataza Gondwe, CSW’s team leader for Africa and the Middle East. So far this year, Iran has executed 12 people under the “warring against God” statute and two for “spreading corruption on Earth.”
What exactly Iranian authorities accuse Ali-Haghnejad of doing is unknown, but Gondwe suspects he is being punished for being a convert from Islam and for his leadership role in a fellowship in Karaj. She said the charge was a worrying sign because it shows “escalation in charges against Christians who have converted from Islam.”
“It’s almost if Christianity is being seen now as some kind of crime,” Gondwe said.
Iranian officials raided Ali-Haghnejad’s home in Bandar-Anzali on July 5, arrested him and confiscated Christian materials, including Bibles and a computer. Two other Christians, Mohammad Roghangir and Suroush Saraie, both converts from Islam, were arrested at his home. Both are thought to be held in Shiraz Prison, where they are serving sentences previously ordered in court.
On July 16, both men were found guilty of “action against the national security” and “propaganda against the order of the system.” Roghangir was sentenced to six years in prison. Saraie was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. The appeal of their sentences failed.
Along with the capital charges filed against the pastors, the Iranian government conducted several raids across the country against Christians this month and in August.
On the evening of Aug. 12, Iranian authorities raided a house church and arrested two converts, Mehdi Vaziri, 28, a graphic designer and Amir Kian, 27, a musician. Human rights groups think they both are being held in Ghezal-Hesar Prison, but no other information is publically known.
Several weeks later at the beginning of this month, Iranian authorities arrested several members of the Church of Iran in Isfahan. On Sept. 1, security officials arrested Mohammad Taslimi, a worship leader for the church. The same day, authorities raided the home of Moluk Darvishi, and then the next day arrested her and her sister, Sepideh Morshedi.
Hamidreza Borhani and his wife Zainab Akbari were also arrested on Sept. 2 during a raid of their home, according to Mohabat News. Officials also seized Bibles, computers and mobile phones during the arrests. The whereabouts of the five are unknown at this time.
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