Eight Christians arrested and interrogated

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) has been informed that eight Iranian Christians were arrested and interrogated by security forces on 5 March 2014.

Amin Khaki, Hossein Barunzadeh, Hossein Etemadifar, Rahman Bahman, Mohammad Bahrami, Saiede Rahimi, Fatemeh Bagheri and Amineh Moalla were arrested on Wednesday afternoon during a group picnic near the city of Shush-e-Daniel.

The group was subsequently taken by minibus to a location where they were blindfolded and interrogated by armed agents from the Ministry of Intelligence and National Security (VEVAK) until 9pm. During the interrogation, members of the group had personal items confiscated, including their mobile phones.

Although details are still unclear, CSW understands that most of the group was released after being told not to contact their relatives. However, arrest warrants were issued by a cleric for three of them, namely, Amin Khaki, Hossein Barunzadeh (Daniel) and Rahman Bahman (Zia).

CSW’s Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said, “This harassment and interrogation of innocent people who were merely socialising is both highly irregular and wholly unacceptable. We urge the Iranian government to ensure that the rule of law is upheld and religious minorities are not subject to arbitrary interference by officials and subsequent trumped-up charges.”

For further information or to arrange interviews please contact Kiri Kankhwende, Press Officer at Christian Solidarity Worldwide on +44 (0)20 8329 0045 / +44 (0) 78 2332 9663, email kiri@csw.org.uk or visit www.csw.org.uk.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) is a Christian organisation working for religious freedom through advocacy and human rights, in the pursuit of justice.