Hadi Rahimi, Christian Believer, Sent to Evin Prison to Serve His Sentence
Hadi Rahimi, a Christian believer, was sent to Evin Prison on Sunday, December 19, to serve his sentence. Mr. Rahimi had previously been sentenced by Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court to four years of imprisonment. This verdict was ultimately upheld by Branch 36 of Tehran Province’s Court of Appeals.
According to Hrana news agency, the news organ of the Iranian human rights activists coalition, on Sunday, December 19, 2021, Hadi Rahimi, a Christian convert, was sent to Evin Prison.
This citizen had previously been summoned by the first unit of the Evin Prosecutor’s Office enforcement division to serve his sentence.
Hadi Rahimi Ahmad Gorabi, along with three other Christian believers, was interrogated in November 2019 following the presence of security forces at his home on charges of “propaganda against the system and society and conspiracy against national security.” After seizing his personal belongings and documents, he was told he would be summoned to court soon.
Mr. Rahimi was summoned in April 2020 via a phone call to Branch 10 of Rasht’s Revolutionary Court on behalf of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, and after being informed of the charges, a bail of 500 million tomans was set for him. On April 25, due to financial inability to pay the bail, he was transferred to Lakan Prison in Rasht, and on May 31, with the bail reduced to 200 million tomans, he was temporarily released from prison pending the completion of legal proceedings.
Hadi Rahimi was sentenced by Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court in August 2020 to four years of imprisonment on the charge of “membership in a group or organization aimed at undermining the country’s security.” In September of the same year, this verdict was upheld by Branch 36 of Tehran Province’s Court of Appeals.
It is said that one of the charges against him was cited as “participation in house church gatherings.”
It should be noted that although according to law Christians are recognized as a religious minority, security agencies pursue the issue of Muslims converting to Christianity with particular sensitivity and deal harshly with activists in this field.
The treatment of Christian believers in Iran occurs while according to Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and to change his religion or belief, and freedom to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance, either alone or in community with others and in public or private.
Source: Hrana
