Iran's judicial system in the "Tasbshir" trap, 7 to 9-year sentences for Christian citizens in Varamin

The Varamin Revolutionary Court and the Tehran Court of Appeal sentenced Christian citizens in Varamin to 7 to 9 years in prison.

The Varamin Revolutionary Court and then Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals have sentenced at least five Christian citizens to long-term imprisonment on charges such as "educational and missionary activities that are contrary to and disruptive of Islamic law" and "establishing a house church."

According to reports published on social media, five Christian citizens, three of whom are identified as “Abolfazl Ahmadzadeh Khajani”, “Morteza Faqanpour” and “Hosameddin Mohammad Junaidi”, have been arrested in Varamin. According to these reports, the citizens have been sentenced to long prison terms ranging from 7.5 to 9 years on charges such as “educational and missionary activities that are contrary to and disruptive of Islamic law” and “establishing a house church”.

Additionally, Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals has also confirmed these sentences exactly. The charges include: “deviant educational and propaganda activities that are contrary to and disruptive of Islamic law,” “propaganda against the regime by providing anti-regime content for the benefit of Zionist missionary organizations,” and “establishing a house church.”

The detainees were arrested between June and August 1403 and were subjected to pressure after their arrest, which included “extorting forced confessions under pressure and torture.” According to Abolfazl Ahmadzadeh Khajani, he was told that if he did not cooperate, his eight-year-old child would be in danger.

Morteza Faqanpour also received an additional 17 months in prison on charges of insulting Ali Khamenei and was subjected to severe physical torture and beatings for hours, to the point that his ribs were damaged and he was forced to sleep sitting up. It should be noted that Morteza Faqanpour had cross tattoos on his body, and prison officials told him that he must either burn the crosses tattooed on his body or we will open a new case against him.

Also, according to Article 18, Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals has also confirmed the sentences issued against these five Christian citizens. In July 2025, they were sentenced to 7 years and 6 months each for “propaganda activity with connections abroad” and seven months for “propaganda against the regime.”

International sources have also reported that some of the defendants were subjected to pressure and torture in pre-trial detention. This comparison shows that the published reports are consistent with what international organizations have recorded, although the exact names of all the defendants and their exact details have not been published for security reasons.

According to lawyer and legal consultant Musa Barzin, the legal conditions in Iran for changing religion or propagating another religion are not clearly criminalized. He explains: “In the Islamic Penal Code, specifically, the issue of apostasy or changing religion is not criminalized at all, but judges are free to interpret it under other laws and issue heavy penalties for these cases.”

In other words, although converting to a new religion is not directly a crime, preaching a new religion or holding religious meetings may fall under headings such as "propaganda against the system," "activity contrary to Sharia," or "connection with foreign missionary organizations."
This structure allows judicial institutions to sentence Christian citizens or other minorities who convert from Islam to another religion to very severe penalties, even without a separate law on conversion.

The cases of these citizens, and those of other religious minority citizens, highlight several points, particularly for the Christian community in Iran:

The Christian community, especially converts from Islam, faces a high risk of legal action, and this issue could prompt a reaction from the international community concerned with human rights and religious freedom.

Operating within a "house church" framework or participating in religious training courses outside of the official framework can lead to security or propaganda charges.

There is a possibility of pressure for forced confessions and torture during prolonged pre-trial detention.

The disqualification of apostasy as a direct crime and its interpretation under security headings demonstrates a lack of transparency in the implementation of religious rights.