Christian believers summoned to Evin Court for final defense
Joseph Shahbazian, Mina Khajoui, Sonia (Somaieh) Sadeq, Farhad Khazaei, and Salar Eshraghi Moghadam were summoned to Evin District Court for their final defense on Saturday, October 14. These individuals, who were previously detained for their Christian beliefs and peaceful religious activities, are currently on temporary release on bail.
The Iranian government has repeatedly imprisoned Christians on various charges without providing any evidence. A group of UN rapporteurs recently wrote to the Iranian government expressing concern about the systematic persecution of Christians and demanding clarification on vague charges such as “acting against national security” and “propaganda against the regime.”
Now, the above-mentioned Christian citizens have been charged and given five days after receiving the summons to appear at the Evin Prosecutor's Office.
Iman Soleimani, the lawyer defending these Christian citizens, told "Article 18" that investigator Mohammad Mehdi Barae, after reading the charges, asked them to present their final defense before issuing an indictment.
According to Mr. Soleimani, the accusations against these Christians were made without providing any documentation and were based solely on claims from IRGC intelligence.
The charges against these individuals include promoting Zionist Christianity, undermining belief in Muslim clergy, membership in groups opposed to the regime to disrupt national security, undermining the foundation of the family, and attracting Muslims to house churches.
The lawyer for these Christian citizens adds that his clients have denied these accusations in their defense.
On July 10 and 11, 2020, security agents raided homes and house churches in various cities, including Tehran, Karaj, and Malayer, arresting dozens of Christians, including Sonia Sadeq, Mina Khajoui, Joseph Shahbazian, Farhad Khazaei, and Salar Ashrafi Moghadam.
It is worth noting that these Christian believers are temporarily free on heavy bail. For Joseph Shahbazian, bail is set at two billion tomans, for Sonia Sadegh, bail is set at five hundred million tomans, and for Mina Khajoui, Farhad Khazaei, and Salar Eshraghi Moghadam, bail is set at one billion and two hundred million tomans each.
Ms. Khajou has also been asked questions about the history of Protestantism and how Zionism uses Protestants, to which she has expressed ignorance.
Mr. Soleimani added that based on information from the IRGC, charges have been filed against this Christian citizen and the investigator told him that by establishing a home church, he caused people to convert, and that he also has a private complainant in this case. The investigator also mentioned that Ms. Khajoui's wife and child had converted to Christianity.
Ms. Khajouy is requesting to face the private plaintiff. She also said that she has not caused anyone to change their religion, and that her son and husband have become interested in Christianity after seeing the change in her life after her faith in Christ.
In previous years, Christians who were victims of government repression due to their religious beliefs told the Article 18 organization in interviews that security agents had forced some Christians who did not have important responsibilities in their house churches not to file complaints or charges against other Christians.
Mr. Soleimani also says that during the final defense hearing, Ms. Khajou took God as a witness and swore by the sacred scriptures that the officers pressured us and that even though I wrote my statements several times, they tore them up and threw them in the trash, saying, "You have to write what we want. Therefore, I do not accept this written report."
Sonia Sadeq has also been accused of undermining national security. Ms. Sadeq was a member of the "One Hearted Women's Church" in Tehran and has also denied the charges.
"Propagating evangelical Christianity" is also among the charges brought against Mr. Shahbazian, and Mr. Soleimani says his client has denied all of them.
Source: Article 18
