Five-Year Prison Sentences for Two Bahai Citizens; Continued Persecution of Religious Minorities in Iran
“Iraj Shokur” and “Pedram Abher,” two Bahai citizens residing in Tehran, were arrested after being summoned to the Tehran Security Prosecutor’s Office and transferred to Evin Prison to serve five-year sentences. This case once again draws attention to the systematic pressure exerted by the Islamic Republic on Bahai citizens and the widespread restrictions on freedom of religion and belief in Iran, affecting Bahais, Christians, and Zoroastrians alike.
According to published reports, “Iraj Shokur,” a writer and researcher, and “Pedram Abher” were arrested on Monday, September 7, 2026, corresponding to the 16th of Shahrivar 1405 in the Iranian calendar, after appearing before the first branch of the execution of sentences at the Tehran Security Prosecutor’s Office, and were transferred to Evin Prison to serve their sentences.
These two citizens were previously sentenced to five years of imprisonment by Branch 29 of the Tehran Revolution Court, presided over by Judge Seyyed Ali Mazloom, on the charge of “membership in groups and associations with the intent to undermine national security.” The sentence was also upheld by Branch 36 of the Tehran Provincial Court of Appeals.
However, case records indicate that the initial charges were broader than the verdict that has now been enforced. In the initial proceedings, Shokur and Abher faced charges not only of security-related offenses but also of “propaganda against the regime.” However, the appeals court rejected this part of the charges and acquitted both defendants on that count. Nevertheless, their five-year conviction on the charge of membership in the Bahai community remained in place.
Pedram Abher was previously arrested by security forces in November 2021. Following his transfer to Evin and undergoing interrogation, he was released on bail. Iraj Shokur also has a history of being summoned, arrested, and interrogated by security forces and remained free on bail until his sentence was enforced.
The case of these two citizens is part of a broader trend targeting Iran’s Bahai community in recent years. In the same case, Iraj Shokur and Pedram Abher were tried alongside four other Bahai citizens, and heavy sentences of imprisonment and asset confiscation were issued against members of this group. Human rights reports also indicate that the appeals court hearing was conducted without a session and without the presence of the defendants and their lawyers.
What elevates this case beyond an ordinary legal dispute is the nature of the charges and their direct connection to the defendants’ religious identity and activities. In the Islamic Republic, Bahais are not officially recognized by the government as a religious minority, and their religious, social, and educational activities have repeatedly been labeled as security threats. The “HANA” human rights organization reported in August 2026 that pressure on religious and belief minorities in Iran has intensified, particularly following the twelve-day war and the heightened security atmosphere. The report states that Bahais have once again faced accusations of ties to Israel, and their activities and even contacts with people outside the country can trigger sensitivity among security institutions.
Christians are not spared from this atmosphere of repression either. Although the Islamic Republic’s Constitution recognizes Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians as religious minorities, this recognition does not equate to equal enjoyment of religious freedom. The updated British government report on the situation of Christians in Iran clarifies that Christian citizens and those who have converted from Islam to Christianity face arrest and legal persecution, with charges such as “propaganda against the regime” and “promotion of Zionist Christianity” being used against them.
The report also states that Christians who openly pursue their faith in Iran are likely to face treatment that, in terms of severity and repetition, constitutes religious harassment and persecution. Churches are under government surveillance, and restrictions are imposed, including prohibitions on holding religious services in Persian for some Christian communities.
Zoroastrians, although recognized in the Islamic Republic’s Constitution as a religious minority, are not immune from broader structural discrimination against non-Muslims. Article 13 of the Constitution recognizes Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians as official religious minorities; however, their freedoms are explicitly conditioned on “the limits of the law.” This same legal framework, combined with laws and regulations based on the country’s official religion, has resulted in the civil rights of religious minorities diverging significantly from the principle of full equal citizenship.
The distinction between “official recognition” and “enjoyment of actual freedom” is highly significant regarding Iran’s religious minorities. The Islamic Republic may officially recognize certain minorities in its Constitution, yet simultaneously impose restrictions on them in religious, social, professional, and political spheres. In contrast, Bahais fundamentally lack a status comparable to official religious minorities within the Islamic Republic’s legal structure and are frequently subjected to security-related treatment.
From the perspective of fundamental human rights, religious belief or change of religion should not be treated as a crime, and membership in a religious community should not be a basis for deprivation of freedom, education, employment, property ownership, or access to fair trial. However, the case of Iraj Shokur and Pedram Abher demonstrates that in Iran, activity related to the Bahai community can still lead to the opening of a security file and issuance of a prison sentence.
The continuation of such treatment is not limited to the Bahai community. Christians, particularly converts, face arrest and legal persecution, and Zoroastrians live within a system in which the rights of minorities are, in many areas, subject to the laws and restrictions imposed by the Islamic Republic’s official religion. For this reason, the case of two Bahai citizens in Evin can be understood as part of a larger picture: the picture of a system in which freedom of religion and belief is not an equal right for all citizens, but rather a limited and conditional privilege dependent on acceptance of the government’s ideological framework.
Under such circumstances, the transfer of Iraj Shokur and Pedram Abher to Evin Prison is not merely the enforcement of two court sentences; this event once again raises the question of why the religious belief and identity of citizens in Iran must be converted into a security file and why citizens belonging to a different religious community must face prison, interrogation, bail, and social deprivations simply to enjoy their most basic rights.
For Iran’s Bahai community, this question remains unanswered, and for Christians and other religious minorities, the experience of recent years demonstrates that the danger of repression, particularly during periods of heightened security atmosphere, remains serious. International reports in 2026 also emphasize continuing concerns about freedom of religion and belief in Iran, and the British government has explicitly deemed targeting religious minorities based on their religious beliefs as “unacceptable.”
As long as membership in a religious community or the attempt to freely hold religious ceremonies and activities can serve as the basis for security charges and imprisonment, claims of respect for the rights of religious minorities in Iran will remain profoundly at odds with the reality of the lives of many of these citizens—a reality that is once again manifested in the fate of Iraj Shokur and Pedram Abher, two Bahai citizens who have set out to Evin to serve five-year prison sentences.
