Arrest of Christian citizen Ismail Narimanpour in Dezful
Ismail Narimanpour, a Christian citizen, was arrested by Ministry of Intelligence agents in Dezful during Christmas.
Esmail Narimanpour, a member of the “Payam Rahaei Church,” was arrested on Sunday, January 25, at around 6:00 PM by agents of the Ministry of Intelligence’s press office who raided his home in the city of Dezful. Without having or showing a search warrant, the agents searched his home and confiscated a number of Christian books, a laptop, and his cell phone.
According to "Article 18," he had a brief call with his family the previous day and announced that he had been transferred to Ahvaz. "Article 18" had reported in Farvardin 1400 that Ismail Narimanpour, Mohammad Ali Torabi, Alireza Varkshah, and Hojat Lotfikhalf were arrested in Dezful and in early May of the same year, after being interrogated, they were temporarily released on a condition that they not engage in Christian activities.
Considering that the Iranian constitution prohibits inquisition, Christian citizens have repeatedly been victims of inquisition during interrogations by officers and court hearings. It should be noted that in December 1401, the Fourth Investigation Branch of the Dezful Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office issued a ban on the prosecution of eight Christian citizens, of which Ismail Narimanpour was a member.
The ruling issued by the aforementioned court stated that "they merely attempted to convert and did not carry out any propaganda activities regarding groups opposed to the regime. Considering that converting on religious grounds is considered apostasy and will result in religious punishment and punishment in the hereafter, it is not criminalized in criminal laws and the principle of legality of crimes and punishments will prevent them from being convicted of committing apostasy."
Every year, as Christmas approaches, the Islamic Republic regime closes house churches and arrests Christian citizens, further intensifying the pressure on them.
Citing Article 18, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution condemning the Islamic Republic's widespread human rights violations, including violations of minority rights, by a majority of votes. The resolution stated that it was deeply concerned about the violations of the rights of religious and secular minorities, including Christians.
