From Gorgan to St. Peter Church: When the Islamic Republic Targets Christian Assets and Heritage in Iran

St. Peter’s historical church in Tehran has become, after nearly 150 years, a new symbol of the Islamic Republic’s pressure on Iran’s Christian community; however, the confiscation of this property is not an isolated incident. From the closure of Persian-language churches and the detention of Christians to the confiscation and even sale of church properties, evidence from the past few decades reveals a systematic government effort to restrict the space for Christian life and worship in Iran.

In recent developments and newly published reports, security forces have been stationed around the St. Peter Evangelical Church in Tehran, and according to Christian sources, they are preventing church members from returning and re-entering the complex. This action followed the forced evacuation of residents and enforcement of a confiscation order affecting a property that for nearly a century and a half had been part of Iranian Protestant history.

St. Peter Church was established in 1876 on Sirah-e Tir Street in Tehran. The complex included not only the church building but also residential homes, two schools, and offices related to Christian organizations. The entire complex covers approximately 10 hectares and has significant economic value due to its central location in Tehran.

The ownership of this complex dates back to a 1998 court ruling. According to reports, the Revolutionary Court ordered that the entire complex be transferred to the “Headquarters of the Execution of Imam’s Decree.” The Council of Evangelical Churches of Iran was unaware of this ruling until 2008, and after learning of it, protested; however, the appeals process ultimately produced no results.

Now this old ruling has been enforced under circumstances where approximately 20 Armenian and Assyrian families were living within the church compound. Reports indicate that these families were given a short time to vacate their homes, and church members were instructed to worship at other churches.

UN special rapporteurs have also reacted to this action. Nazila Ghanea, the special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, and Mai Sato, the special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, stated in a joint statement: “The forced eviction of 20 Armenian and Assyrian families is incompatible with international human rights law and puts at risk the homelessness of members of recognized religious and ethnic minorities.”

The two UN officials further emphasized: “This is not an isolated incident, but rather the culmination of a long process of measures against Iran’s Christian community, especially Persian-speaking Christians.”

The UN rapporteurs also stressed that the St. Peter complex was not merely a property for its residents but rather “home, school, and place of worship” for them. They called for the return of residents and the church congregation, cessation of threats, and freedom for Christians who had been arbitrarily detained.

The importance of the St. Peter case becomes clearer when examined not in isolation from the history of the past few decades. The Islamic Republic has repeatedly emphasized internationally that Armenians and Assyrians are recognized religious minorities with the right to hold religious ceremonies. However, multiple reports show that the situation of Christians, especially Persian-speaking Christians and converts to Christianity, is quite different.

A report by Article 18 organization shows that the number of active Protestant churches in Iran has declined sharply in recent decades. There were once approximately 50 active Protestant churches in Iran, but today only a limited number are permitted to operate, and many of these churches are not even allowed to conduct services in Persian.

St. Peter Church had previously been forced to halt its Persian-language services—an action that, according to Christian sources, was intended to prevent the participation of converts to Christianity.

In June 2026, a Protestant church in Mashhad that had previously held Persian-language services was demolished without prior warning. Article 18 organization considers this church one of the recent examples of destruction or repurposing of church properties in Iran.

Therefore, the St. Peter case cannot be viewed merely as a legal dispute over ownership of a piece of land or building. When a historic church is confiscated, Christian residents are forced to leave their homes, and the congregation is denied access to their place of worship, the issue directly concerns religious freedom and the right to have a place of worship—a point also emphasized by the World Council of Churches.

Perhaps one of the most striking examples of showing that the matter does not end merely with closure or confiscation is the case of the Gorgan Jama’at-e Rabbani Church.

This church is located in northern Iran in the city of Gorgan and holds special significance in the history of Protestantism in Iran. The church was founded in 1970 by Haik Hovsepian, one of the most prominent leaders of Iran’s evangelical Christians.

Haik Hovsepian later became the head of the Jama’at-e Rabbani churches of Iran and was killed under suspicious circumstances in January 1994. Another leader of this church was Hossein Soodmand, who was executed in 1990 on charges of “apostasy.” Mohammadbagher Yousofi, known as “Rouhpakhsh,” was also another priest associated with this church who died under suspicious circumstances in the 1990s.

After years of closure, the church building was listed for sale in 2023 on a website affiliated with the “Headquarters of the Execution of Imam’s Decree.” The announced sale price for this building was 6.3 billion rials, equivalent to approximately 150,000 dollars at that time, and the Headquarters itself described this offer as an “exceptional proposal.”

This case is significant because it demonstrates that the fate of some church properties in the Islamic Republic has not merely ended with church closures. In some cases, the property was first closed or confiscated, and after years, it entered the cycle of government assets and was even put up for sale.

Article 18 organization also considers the Gorgan church an example of Christian property that, after forced closure, was ultimately confiscated by the government and put up for sale.

The Gorgan church is not the only example. In 2017, officials from the “Headquarters of the Execution of Imam’s Decree” gave the Council of the Jama’at-e Rabbani Churches of Iran a three-day notice to vacate “Sharon Garden” in Wald Abad, Karaj. This property covered over 10,000 square meters and, according to Article 18’s report, was valued at approximately three million dollars.

The garden had been established since the early 1970s through financial contributions from church members and was used for camping and church activities. The Revolutionary Court issued an order to confiscate it in 2015, and in subsequent years, the property came under the control of government institutions.

This means the St. Peter case is not the beginning of a process but rather a new link in a chain that began years ago. In this context, there is another important issue: the Islamic Republic’s pressure has not been limited to church buildings and lands.

Persian-language churches have been repeatedly closed. For example, the Persian-language Jannatabadi Church in Tehran was closed in 2012 by order of the Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. In 2019, Islamic Republic forces raided the historic Assyrian Protestant Church in Tabriz, changed its locks, and removed the church official from the premises. A joint report submitted to the UN Human Rights Committee has documented these cases as violations of property rights and freedom of religion and belief.

In recent years, pressure on Christian converts has continued. A report by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom shows that Christians, especially those who have converted from Islam to Christianity, have faced arrest and severe prison sentences.

Thus, what happened at St. Peter Church can be seen as part of several simultaneous policies: restricting Persian-language worship, closing churches, pressuring church leaders, arresting Christians, and in some cases confiscating or repurposing Christian properties. This situation creates a clear contradiction with the Islamic Republic’s claim to respect the rights of religious minorities.

Representatives of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly spoken about the rights of religious minorities in international forums. But the fundamental question is: if a religious community is deprived of its place of worship, if Persian-language churches are closed, if the homes of Christian families in a church complex are confiscated, and if the property of a closed church is ultimately put up for sale, to what extent is talk of religious freedom compatible with the reality of that community’s life?

This contradiction is also reflected in international reports. Article 18 organization, in a report on the presence of Islamic Republic representatives at the United Nations, has noted that while government officials claim to have “renovated 40 churches,” other church properties have been confiscated, repurposed, or put up for sale—including the Gorgan church.

The St. Peter case has now transcended Iran’s borders. The World Council of Churches, in a statement on July 27, 2026, expressed grave concern over the confiscation of the church complex and the headquarters of the Council of Evangelical Churches of Iran, the eviction of residents, and reports about the cessation of worship at this historic church.

The Council called for the cancellation of the confiscation, the return of the complex to the Council of Evangelical Churches of Iran, and permission for residents and church members to return. In such circumstances, the issue is no longer merely about preserving a historic building. St. Peter Church is part of Iranian Christians’ religious and social heritage—a place where generations of Iranian Christians have worshipped, lived, and shaped their community.

The Islamic Republic can speak in official speeches about respect for Armenians, Assyrians, and the holding of their religious ceremonies, but the true measure of religious freedom should be sought in the government’s treatment of churches, church properties, Christian leaders, and followers of this faith.

When a church is closed, no other place of worship can replace it; when property is confiscated, not only a deed of ownership is lost; and when Christian families are expelled from their homes, the issue goes beyond the realm of property and becomes a matter of security, dignity, and the right to life of a religious community.

St. Peter Church today stands at the center of this question: Do Iranian Christians truly enjoy religious freedom, or only as long as their worship and presence do not conflict with the security and political interests of the Islamic Republic?

The experience of churches in Gorgan, Sharon, Tabriz, Mashhad, and now St. Peter shows that the issue cannot be considered an “isolated incident.” Even UN special rapporteurs have precisely with this reasoning described the St. Peter case as the “culmination of a long process” against Iran’s Christian community.

And perhaps the most bitter aspect of the matter is that in a country with a long history of Christian presence, part of their heritage is now either locked behind closed doors, confiscated, repurposed, or—as with the Gorgan church—put up for sale.

St. Peter is not merely the story of one church; it is the story of a community that the Islamic Republic speaks about in official propaganda respecting their rights, but in practice over decades has restricted the scope of their presence and freedom ever more narrowly.