We serve Christians around the world whose brave faith in Jesus means they are, beaten, threatened, imprisoned, tortured, falsely accused, disowned and hated.

Iran: Christians hit with massive bail fees

pattern

Iranian Christians paid almost £1 million in bail fees over the last year, according to a new report co-authored by Open Doors and other religious-freedom organisations.

For many of those arrested, the charges against them were simply that they had attended church. Christians in Iran are being hit with outrageous fees to stay out of prison – with some even having to surrender deeds for their homes in order to foot the bill.

Dr David Landrum, director of advocacy at Open Doors UK and Ireland, says that extreme rights violations against Christians in Iran didn’t let up with the coronavirus pandemic.

“At least 115 Iranian Christians were arrested on grounds of religious activities or their Christian identity in 2020,” he said. “Simply going to a house church is treated as a threat to national security. Christians – particularly converts from Islam – continued to be targeted for their faith. This repression stops Christians in Iran living a normal life, free from fear.”

In one case, fees for four Christians came to seven billion tomans, about £159,500 each – the most ever demanded for an Iranian Christian’s bail. The minimum annual salary in Iran is about £1,000.

The judge reportedly told them: “Your actions are worthy of death! Who set this low bail amount for you [it was 800 million tomans previously], so you could be free to roam about on the streets?”

Overall, in 2020, Christians detained over national security allegations had to pay a total of £868,169 to be granted bail.


Image: Street scene in Iran, pre-Covid-19

Persecution in Iran is becoming increasingly cruel

Prison or fines are far from the only ways that Christians are persecuted in Iran. Two Christian converts, Sam Khosravi and wife Maryam Falahi, recently lost custody of their daughter, Lydia, who they had adopted from an orphanage in 2019 when she was just three months old – because the couple are Christians.

“We have looked after our daughter for nearly two years,” they said. “Even the judge admitted an ‘intense emotional tie’ has been established between us. After taking her away, based on their own assessment, Lydia will face an ‘uncertain future’, yet they insist on separating us from one another.

“This will have an immense emotional toll on all of us, and most importantly, on Lydia.”

In another case of harsh persecution, Article18 reported that two Christians, Youhan Omidi and Saheb Fadaie, were ‘flogged with 80 lashes each this last year – for the crime of drinking communion wine’.

Please continue to pray for our persecuted sisters and brothers in Iran – and pray for the work of Open Doors as they support believers through local partners with online leadership training and discipleship, and advocacy.

PRAY NOW...
1

That God would protect Christians in secret house churches from detection

3

That He would soften the hearts of the Iranian judiciary towards Christians, that they would act with justice and compassion.

2

For God’s comfort to surround Sam Khosravi, Maryam Falahi and Lydia, and that they would be reunited soon

What you can do now...
  • 1
    Get our World Watch List prayer map and resources

    to learn more and pray regularly.

    Do that here
  • 2
    Blackout during lent

    get sponsored to give up something you love for a short time in the run up to Easter and raise money and prayer for those who have lost everything because of their faith in Jesus.

    Sign up here
NEWS
                                    
October 2, 2023

Pray for Pastor Wasantha* and members of his church who are facing threats and intimidation…

Find out more
                                    
October 2, 2023

“The world knows how the Taliban are against women’s education and women working outside.” Pray for change now…

Find out more
                                    
September 25, 2023

See how your support is helping children in Iraq and Syria get back to school and find healing from the trauma’s of war…

Find out more
                                    
September 25, 2023

Alima has known rejection for most her life, but in Jesus she found hope and protection…

Find out more
                                    
September 18, 2023

Your prayers are needed following yet another awful attack on Christians in Nigeria, in which a student was killed.

Find out more
                                    
September 18, 2023

A summer camp for children and teenagers run by christians in Central Asia was raided by police and the camp leader was arrested and fined…

Find out more
                                    
September 12, 2023

Pray now as almost 3,000 people have died and hundreds more have been injured in the disaster…

Find out more
                                    
September 4, 2023

“We will not give up our faith; we believe that God will continue to reveal Himself to us and to these people…”

Find out more
                                    
September 4, 2023

Aasif bravely led more than 30 people to believe in Jesus, but in the end he paid the ultimate price for his faith…

Find out more
                                    
August 29, 2023

“Looking back, to be honest, we’re feeling nervous, fearful and worried, as it’s our first time to encounter this…“

Find out more
btn-scroll