Pastor Yousef Nadarkhwani and three other Iranian Christians sentenced to ten years in prison

The verdicts of four Iranian Christians, each sentenced to ten years in prison, were upheld by the Court of Appeal.

One of these convicts is Yousef Nadarkhani, a priest who was imprisoned nearly a decade ago. He converted to Christianity at the age of 19 and was sentenced to death in 2009 for apostasy. He was asked to repent of his conversion, which he refused. He was in prison for a while until he was finally released in 2012. At that time, it was announced that he had been sentenced to three years, and that he would be released after serving this time in prison.

Three other people whose ten-year prison sentences were confirmed are Mohammad Reza Omidi, Yaser Mosayebzadeh, and Sahib Fadaei, who were arrested two years ago on charges of following what has been called "Zionist Christianity" and "acting against national security."

Pastors Nadarkhani and Omidi were sentenced to an additional two years in prison because their church had received financial aid from the British government. Three of the congregation were also sentenced to 80 lashes each for consuming alcohol during their religious services.

All four are now free on bail and may be summoned soon to serve their sentences.

Mervyn Thomas, a well-known Christian rights activist, while calling these sentences unfair and disproportionate to the charges against the four, has called on the international community to pressure the Islamic Republic of Iran to comply with its legal and international obligations regarding the right to freedom of religion and belief for its citizens.

Just two days ago, the United States released a report on the role of religious freedom, in which it identified Iran as one of the countries that pressured followers of various religions and sentenced them to flogging, imprisonment, and execution.

Source: Voice of America