Persecution of Bahá'ís in Iran

On March 9, 2010, Voice of America published an editorial drawing further attention to the plight of Iran’s Baha’i community. In it, Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner is quoted condemning Iran’s post-election crackdown and calling on the country to observe religious freedom, among its other human rights treaty obligations. “The United States strongly condemns [...]

On March 8, the RFE/RL blog “Watchdog” published a Q&A with D.C.-area Baha’i Sovaida Ma’ani Ewing about the persecution of Iran’s Baha’i religious minority. The interview specifically addresses the ongoing trial of seven Baha’i leaders, which is expected to continue in Tehran on April 10, 2010. Here’s an excerpt of the interview… RFE/RL: For the [...]

On February 23, 2010, Human Rights Watch issued the following statement calling on Iran to end its persecution of the country’s Baha’i minority. The Iranian government should immediately stop harassing and arbitrarily detaining members of the Baha’i community, Human Rights Watch said today. The detention of 13 Baha’is on February 10 and 11 follows the [...]

The third court session for seven Baha’i leaders imprisoned in Iran is scheduled for April 10, a day earlier than originally announced. Diane Ala’i, representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva, said attorneys in Iran have now received written notice of the court date, confirming it as Saturday, April 10. [...]

On February 17, Amnesty International issued a statement criticizing Iran for rejecting “important recommendations by the United Nations to improve human rights in the country,” including a recommendation that would end discrimination against the nation’s Baha’i minority. From the statement… While accepting a recommendation to cooperate with UN’s human rights experts, Iran rejected several others [...]

On February 16, “Faith Complex,” a program of the Washington Post and Georgetown University, published an interview with  Baha’i author Sovaida Ma’ani Ewing of Washington, D.C. The 11-minute program provides an overview of the past and present persecution of the Baha’i Faith in Iran. You can watch it via the Washington Post.

On February 15, 2010, the United States and other member-nations of the U.N. Human Rights Council expressed concern over Iran’s human rights record, particularly since the crackdown that followed the country’s disputed presidential election last June. The session was part of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a relatively new procedure that seeks to review the [...]

On February 14, 2010, English-language news outlets, including the Associated Press, Reuters and Voice of America, reported that at least five more Baha’is have been arrested in Iran. This follows the arrest of 13 Iranian Baha’is on January 3; ten of whom remain in prison. There are currently around 60 Baha’is in prison throughout Iran, [...]

Seven imprisoned Baha’i leaders appeared in court yesterday in Iran for the second closed session of their trial. Family members were not permitted into the courtroom and the hearing, which lasted just over one hour, does not seem to have gone beyond procedural issues. No date was given for any future sessions. The seven defendants—Mrs. [...]

The Baha’i International Community has issued a statement condemning the trial of 16 individuals in Iran on January 30 as a “violation of all internationally accepted standards of legal due process.” The statement highlights the lack of proper legal representation for the defendants and the use of unreliable “confessions” in the trial. One of the [...]

Human Rights Watch again included the persecution of Iran’s Baha’i community in it’s annual report, World Report 2010, which evaluates human rights in 90 countries and territories throughout 2009. Below is an excerpt from the report on Iran, mentioning the situation of the Baha’is: The government continues to deny members of the Baha’i faith, Iran’s [...]

On January 27, the Baha’i World News Service published the following article concerning the “lack of information about the status of 10 Baha’is who were arrested earlier this month in Iran.” From the article: In addition to worry about their safety, there are fears that charges against these 10 will be used to create false [...]

On January 22, The New York Times published the following article, written by religion columnist Samuel G. Freedman, about the persecution of the Baha’i Faith in Iran from the perspective of a D.C.-area Baha’i whose brother, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, is among seven Baha’i leaders who are currently on trial in Tehran. From the article… In [...]

Iranian authorities have notified the lawyers of seven imprisoned Bahá’í leaders that the next session of their trial will be held on February 7, 2010, the Bahá’í International Community announced today. After 20 months in prison, with limited access to their attorneys, the defendants— Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid [...]

The commencement of the trial of seven Baha’is in Iran was highlighted this week by the PBS program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly: In Iran, a trial there has drawn international condemnation. Seven leaders of the Baha’i community are accused of spying for Israel, charges that have them facing the death penalty. The accused have been [...]

On January 11, 2010, Voice of America highlighted the latest persecution of Iran’s Baha’i community in an editorial expressing concern about human rights abuses in that country. Diane Ala’i, the Baha’i International Community representative to the United Nations in Geneva, has voiced grave concern over the plight of 7 Iranian Baha’is who have been in [...]

On January 11, 2010,  the U.S. Department of State issued a statement condemning the trial of seven Baha’i leaders in Tehran and indicating that Iran is responsible for the safety of all 48 Baha’is who are currently detained in prisons throughout Iran. Of the seven leaders, the statement asserts: These persons are entitled to due [...]

On Saturday, January 9, 2010, the Baha’i World News Service published the following article in response to Iran’s allegations, published in recent news reports, that “arms and ammunition were found in the homes of Baha’is who were arrested in Tehran last Sunday.” The Baha’i International Community today categorically rejected new allegations by the Iranian government [...]

On Saturday, January 9, 2010, CNN International published the following story concerning the latest wave of persecution of the Baha’is in Iran and its potential impact on the expected trial of seven Baha’i leaders tomorrow, January 12. A trial for seven Iranian Baha’is that has come to symbolize the persecution of followers of the faith [...]

On December 1, the U.S. Senate passed by unanimous consent a resolution condemning the state-sponsored persecution of Bahá’ís in Iran, the country’s largest religious minority. Human rights violations against the Iranian Bahá’í community have increased since 2005, including the incarceration of Baha’i leaders in Evin prison eighteen months ago. S.Res.71 is a concurrent resolution to H.Res.175—the eleventh congressional [...]