RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION

Iran Court Sentences Three Baha'i Citizens to Prison

August 22, 2024

Arshia Rouhani, Hamid Monzavi, and Arash Nabavi, all residents of Isfahan, have been sentenced to two years in prison each by Branch 37 of the Isfahan Appeals Court


An appeals court in Iran's central Isfahan province has sentenced three Baha'i citizens to prison terms and additional penalties amid an ongoing persecution of religious minorities in the country.

Arshia Rouhani, Hamid Monzavi, and Arash Nabavi, all residents of Isfahan, have been sentenced to two years in prison each by Branch 37 of the Isfahan Appeals Court.

In addition to the prison terms, each defendant faces a fine of 24 million tomans ($400), a two-year ban on leaving the country, and restrictions on online activities for the same period.

This ruling significantly reduces earlier, harsher sentences handed down by the Isfahan Revolutionary Court.

Previously, Rouhani and Monzavi had been sentenced to five years in prison each, along with fines and asset confiscation. Nabavi had received an even more severe sentence of ten years.

Arash Nabavi, 38, was initially arrested in August 2023 and held for two months before being released on bail, according to Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

In September 2023, businesses owned by Rouhani and Monzavi were temporarily sealed by the Ministry of Intelligence, only to be reopened a month later.

Subsequently, on October 30, 2023, both men were summoned and arrested by the Isfahan Public Prosecutor's Office.

Baha’is have been systematically persecuted in Iran for 44 years because of their faith and are often accused of being spies or opposed to the Iranian government.

The Baha’i International Community notes that generally no evidence is provided to demonstrate these charges.

The Iranian government has intensified its crackdown on members of the Baha'i faith, imprisoning dozens of them on spurious charges over the past year, as well as denying access to higher education and livelihoods, and confiscating or destroying personal properties.