Nearly a dozen captives freed; prayer needed for those who remain

(Map courtesy Wikipedia)

Iran (MNN) ― Two of the prisoners released from Iran's notorious Evin prison are Christ-followers.

"We want to thank God that these two women, these two believers are released. That is wonderful news to receive," says E3 Partners VP of Church and Ministry Partnerships and Middle East Strategy Director, Tom Doyle.

A few days ago, at least 11 political prisoners were released from Iran's notorious Evin Prison. Among them were believers Mitra Rahmati and Maryam Jalili, according to Mohabat News.

The women were sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for sharing the Gospel with Muslims and "being members of a Christian group", the Mohabat article states.

"It is a good sign," Doyle adds, "but we know that Iran--their government--is very famous for kind of 'pandering to the press' when the pressure is on, and they're feeling that right now."

Iran's moderate Islamic president, Hassan Rohani, is scheduled to appear before the United Nations General Assembly next week. Rohani is expected to deliver a speech and raise diplomatic favor.

With U.S. Pastor Saeed Abedini and Pastor Farshid Fathi among those remaining within Evin's walls, the desperate need for prayer remains.

"When I heard prisoners were going to be released, we certainly prayed, but it didn't happen that two of the key ones were let go, so we need to just keep praying for them," says Doyle.

"It seems like they go harder after the leadership," he adds, explaining that Abedini and Fathi are viewed as "prized possessions" by Iranian officials.

"Pastor Saeed and Pastor Fathi had quite a network, and that's what [officials are] trying to do: break up any kind of network and [its] influence."

Pray for their release. Ask the Lord to keep them safe during their imprisonment.

"I never hear believers in Iran pray for persecution or hardship to end," Doyle notes.

"I've always heard them pray, 'Lord, just show us what we need to learn. You are God. You could've stopped this, so we conclude that there's a reason for it, so teach us everything that we need to know'."

For 25 years, E3 Partners has been sharing the Gospel with the Middle East and Central Asia (MECA). Doyle says they help persecuted believers in any and every way they can.

"Some of them have struggled financially; some of them are needing follow-up materials for new believers," he says.

One of E3's most recent projects is a small publication printed in the Farsi language, called "The Incredible Journey."

"It's just a small Bible survey that helps new believers navigate from Genesis to Revelation," Doyle explains. "Obviously, the Holy Spirit leads us, but we find that there are extra resources that we can get that can really help them as they're training this new, vibrant, fast-growing Church in Iran."

Learn more about E3's MECA program and how you can get involved.

"If people want to reach out and bless the Church in Iran, the leaders that need help with resources, materials, going to conferences, or help with feeding their family, they can get on E3Partners.org," says Doyle.

You can also get updates on Abedini, Fathi, and Iran's other persecuted believers on E3's 8thirty8 Facebook page.

"Informed prayer is critical," Doyle states. "We give updates of people who are either in prison, under persecution or in danger, whether it be Iran, Egypt, Syria.

"If believers get connected, they'll be a little bit more informed on their prayers, and that would really be helpful."

Pray for the Body of Christ in Iran.

"It amazes me the believers that go to underground churches and risk their lives, knowing that they might end up at a place like Evin Prison," says Doyle. "They want to share the Gospel, and that's why Iran is the fastest-growing Church in the world now, per capita.

"People are sharing the Gospel, but it's risky, and that's why we need to pray for them."

Christian convert Farshid Fathi goes on trial in Iran’s Evin Prison

By Michael Ireland
Senior International Correspondent, ASSIST News Service

TEHRAN, IRAN (ANS) -- The trial of Farshid Fathi, a Christian convert who has been held in prison for more than a year, has finally been held after being postponed several times for various reasons.

Farshid Fathi (Courtesy Mohabat News).

According to Mohabat News www.mohabatnews.com  citing “a knowledgeable source” who sent a report to the agency, Fathi had been arrested more than a year ago during a raid by security authorities in Tehran.

According to this report, the trial, which had been postponed several times, was eventually held on February 5, in a Revolutionary Court based in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison.

Mohabat News said it is being reported that the court will deliver its verdict to Fathi's attorney in three months. 

However, according to the penal code in Iran, the judge is obliged to issue the verdict not more than one week after the inquiries are completed.

“It seems that such illegal actions had been carried out by security and Revolutionary Courts officials in order to cause the prisoner more serious mental harm. Such actions are regarded as torture from the perspective of a prisoner,” the agency reported on its website.

Mohabat News explained that near the end of last year, when the Norouz celebrations of 1390 (Persian year) were at hand, security authorities informed Mr. Fathi's family that he could be temporarily released after submitting a bail of 200 million Tomans (equal to $200,000 USD according to the exchange rates of that time).

“But when Fathi was ready for his release at the appointed time, and even had collected all his personal belongings from the prison guards and was at the door, they prevented him from leaving the prison in order to make a negative mental impact on him,” the agency said.

The agency added: “This Christian convert is now being held in the general ward of the prison. It is also reported that he is in a good health condition and his family is allowed to visit him according to prison laws.”

Mohabat News stated that Fathi was arrested as part of a broad-planned attack by security authorities on December 26, 2010, right before New Year celebrations.

“At the same time as this attack, a large number of other Christian citizens and members of house churches were also arrested in Tehran and other cities. A majority of these detainees were temporarily released on heavy bails after some months,” the agency reported.

Farshid Fathi, who is 33 and the father of two children, was held in solitary confinement.

“During that time, he was subjected to severe interrogations by Intelligence Ministry's agents. There, he was questioned about who had he shared the gospel with and what foreign contacts he had been in touch with?”

The Mohabat News report continued: “Unfortunately, some people and organizations. who are not aware of the facts but who call themselves compassionate towards Christian prisoners, are refusing to give updates in this regard. They even prevent others from publishing news because they think it is not in the interest of Christians and could worsen their situations.

“As a result, some inaccurate reports have been published regarding Farshid Fathi. Although these people try to earn credit for themselves with respect to these prisoners, their ill-advised activities furthers the Iranian government's interest and even contributes to the continued detention of the prisoners.”

Mohabat News commented: “At a time when the General Council of the United Nations has appointed a special rapporteur to investigate human rights in Iran, this ill-informed view has helped enable the Republic Islamic of Iran to remain silent. It fosters a lack of information on the condition of prisoners and also a lack of factual reports to human rights organizations.

“Considering the large number of Christian prisoners that are being held in prisons in different cities across the country, the concern over the condition of these brothers and sisters is not only an issue for their families but it has expanded to become an issue of the whole church of Iran and a continuing prayer request for many believers around the world who share this passion.”

The agency report concluded: “Being transparent and informing the public regarding the condition of Christian prisoners, Mohabat News calls on churches everywhere to pray for the release of Christian prisoners and all other prisoners of conscience and lift their hands to Heaven in unity.”

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** Michael Ireland is the Senior International Correspondent for ANS. He is an international British freelance journalist who was formerly a reporter with a London (United Kingdom) newspaper and has been a frequent contributor to UCB UK, a British Christian radio station. While in the UK, Michael traveled to Canada and the United States, Albania,Yugoslavia, Holland, Germany,and Czechoslovakia. He has reported for ANS from Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Israel, Jordan, China,and Russia. Michael's volunteer involvement with ASSIST News Service is a sponsored ministry department -- 'Michael Ireland Media Missionary' (MIMM) -- of A.C.T. International of P.O.Box 1649, Brentwood, TN 37024-1649, at: Artists in Christian Testimony (A.C.T.) International where you can make a donation online under 'Donate' tab, then look for 'Michael Ireland Media Missionary' under 'Donation Category' to support his stated mission of 'Truth Through Christian Journalism.' Michael is a member in good standing of the National Writers Union, Society of Professional Journalists, Religion Newswriters Association, Evangelical Press Association and International Press Association. If you have a news or feature story idea for Michael, please contact him at: ANS Senior International Reporter

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** You may republish this story with proper attribution.

Iranian Pastor on Death Row Under Pressure

Ruling awaited from supreme leader on Christian sentenced to death for leaving Islam.

By Damaris Kremida

Youcef Nadarkhani

ISTANBUL, November 15 (Compass Direct News) – The mistreatment of a pastor in Iran awaiting a decision on his death sentence for refusing to recant his faith amounts to physical and psychological torture, a source close to the pastor’s family said.

Yousef (also spelled Youcef) Nadarkhani, sentenced to death a year ago after a court of appeals in Rasht, Iran, found him guilty of leaving Islam in September 2010, is in deteriorating health, according to a member of Nadarkhani’s denomination, the Church of Iran, who requested anonymity.

He said that communication with Nadarkhani is limited, but that sources close to the imprisoned Christian indicated that he has undergone physical and psychological torture. 

“Certainly he was hit, but his [telephone] conversations are heard [by authorities],” the source said. “We know that he has been in extreme situations, and we consider that torture. When you have spent time in a solitary cell unable to talk to others for a long time, or you are told you will be killed, this is also torture.”

The court in Rasht, 243 kilometers (151 miles) northwest of Tehran, was expected to pronounce a verdict on Nadarkhani’s appeal last month, and sources said the court’s long silence bodes ill. Instead of pronouncing a verdict, the court sent the Christian’s case to the nation’s Islamic authority, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, to make a ruling.

Authorities have also continued to pressure Nadarkhani to recant his faith while in prison. Last month they gave him Islamic literature aimed at discrediting the Bible, according to sources, and instructed him to read it.

Some sources indicate a ruling could come the second half of December. One said some Iranian Christians believe that, in the face of international outrage over the case, the government would announce a verdict near the Christmas holidays so that it would receive less notice. On Nov. 10, the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) reported that a verdict on Nadarkhani’s case was expected in mid-December, regardless of whether there is a ruling by Khamenei.

Authorities arrested Nadarkhani in his home city of Rasht in Oct. 2009 on charges that he questioned obligatory religion classes in Iranian schools. After finding him guilty of apostasy, the court of appeals in Rasht in November 2010 issued a written confirmation of his charges and death sentence.

At an appeal hearing in June, the Supreme Court of Iran upheld Nadarkhani’s sentence but asked the court in Rasht to determine if he was a practicing Muslim before his conversion. The court declared that Nadarkhani was not a practicing Muslim before his conversion, but that he was still guilty of apostasy due to his Muslim ancestry.

The Supreme Court had also determined that his death sentence could be annulled if he recanted his faith. The Rasht court gave Nadarkhani three chances to recant Christianity in accordance with sharia (Islamic law), but Nadarkhani refused to do so. His final appeal hearings ended on Sept. 28, and the court was expected to make its final decision two weeks from the final hearing.

“For the moment, we are waiting,” said the Church of Iran source. “We have no response for now. The only thing his lawyer told me is that the file went to the Supreme Court, but normally we should have had a response by now.”

There are two more Christians from the Church of Iran, a denomination that Iranian Christians accuse of being “non-Trinitarian,” who are also serving prison sentences. Behnam Irani has been in prison since he was arrested on April 14 in Karaj, charged with “propaganda against the system.”Authorities were due to release him on Oct. 20, but instead they handed him a letter just days before informing him that a five-year prison sentence from 2008 for “action against national security,” which had been suspended, was effective immediately due to the second conviction on a similar charge, according to Mohabat News.

The other incarcerated Christian, Mehdi Foroutan (also known as Petros), has been in prison in Shiraz for two months, serving a one-year sentence for propaganda against the state and “action against national security,” according to sources.

As Christians in Iran are held hostage to the government’s political whims, the source said, the key to their freedom is continued pressure from the international community.

“The pressure is the most important thing,” he said. “When the Iranian state sees pressure, they will understand the world hasn’t forgotten Yousef, Behnam and Petros.”

Nadarkhani’s lawyer, Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, also faces charges for “actions and propaganda against the Islamic regime,” due to his human rights activities.

In the past week U.S. State Department Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson Cook called for the release of Pastor Nadarkhani, according to CBN.

“I want to echo President Obama’s and Secretary Clinton’s – and repeat my own – condemnation of his conviction and our calls on Iranian authorities to release Pastor Nadarkhani immediately,” Cook said, according to CBN. “I urge all of you to do the same.”

Arrests of Christians

Another wave of arrests is expected this December and January, a favorite time for Iranian authorities to make the rounds at Christian house group meetings, according to the Church of Iran source. He said the best Christmas gift for Iranian Christians this year would be for Western powers and Christians to continue to lobby for their freedoms.

Historically, the Iranian government has cracked down on Christians during the Christmas season, when house group members gather in larger numbers. Last year in a two-month period over the holidays, authorities arrested more than 120 Christians belonging to Iran’s underground church.

All have been released, with a few known exceptions. One of those arrested, Farshid Fathi, 32, has been in the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran since Dec. 26, 2010.  He has spent much of that time in solitary confinement and has been mistreated, according to Mohabat News. He is married and has two young children.

Noorollah Ghabitizadeh (also spelled Qabitizade) has been in prison since Dec. 24, 2010. Authorities originally held him in Dezful and later transferred him to Ahwaz as punishment for starting a Bible study at the Dezful prison, Mohabat News reported.

Authorities have reportedly put Ghabitizadeh under intense pressure to renounce Christianity and return to Islam. In his first trial hearing two months ago, a judge pressured him by telling him his death penalty for apostasy would be decided in that court hearing, according to Mohabat News.

On Oct. 17 authorities arrested another Christian convert, Fariborz Arazm, 44, in Robat Karim, according to Mohabat News. His whereabouts and condition are unknown.

Earlier this week, Amnesty International issued a statement denouncing the continual degradation of human rights in Iran and the unwillingness of the government to espouse international human rights practices.

The official religion of Iran is Shiite Muslim, and the country’s laws and regulations are based on sharia.

www.compassdirect.org

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