Persecution of Christian converts in Iran has surged sixfold in the past year, with the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) reporting violent arrests, interrogations, lengthy prison terms, and mistreatment.
Over 300 have been prosecuted in Tehran alone, with nearly 100 more sentenced to lengthy prison terms for simply practicing the faith.
“The Christian community in Iran is facing a crisis. The Iranian authorities are abducting growing numbers of Christians and throwing absurd national security charges at them in order to imprison them for years for doing nothing other than peacefully practicing their faith,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director of CHRI.
While Iran recognizes the three Abrahamic religions, Islam, Christianity and Judaism, conversion out of Islam is deemed a crime equivalent to treason, which can even lead to execution.
Last year, CHRI quotes the Article 18 organization as saying the authorities handed down a total of 263 years in prison to 96 Christians, up from 43.5 years for 22 people in 2023, the arrests carried out by Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) intelligence agents.
The rights group said the courts typically used a loophole in Article 500 of Iran's Penal Code of 2021 to push the heavy sentences through, since the law stipulates heavy punishments for anyone who commits “any deviant educational or proselytizing activity that contradicts or interferes with the sacred law of Islam”.
Ghaemi added, “The persecution of Christians in Iran is part of the Islamic Republic’s assault on civil liberties, religious freedom, and minority communities, and it reflects the regime’s reliance on fear and repression to maintain control.”
The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Mai Sato, recently called the matter of the persecution of Christians in the country a matter of serious concern that requires immediate attention.
Sato addressed Article18’s joint side event at the UN in Geneva in late January, calling it a “timely opportunity” to assess the reality faced by Christian communities in Iran.
In its 2023/4 annual report on Iran, Amnesty International said religious persecution was rife.
"Religious minorities, including Baha’is, Christians, Gonabadi Dervishes, Jews, Sunni Muslims and Yaresan, suffered discrimination in law and practice, including in access to education, employment, child adoption, political office and places of worship. Hundreds were subjected to arbitrary detention, unjust prosecution, and torture and other ill-treatment for professing or practising their faith."
Highlighting the dangers of conversion, the report added, "People born to parents classified as Muslim by the authorities risked arbitrary detention, torture or the death penalty for “apostasy” if they adopted other religions or atheism."
