There has been a significant increase in human rights violations in Iran since the 2009 elections, and the past year has seen a particular rise in the persecution of religious minorities, principally of Christians from the Iranian house church movement.
Since June 2010 there have been nearly 300 confirmed cases of Christians who have suffered arrests, interrogations and detentions in at least 35 cities across Iran; however the full figure is almost certainly far higher. The majority of those arrested have been released following a short incarceration, but many have been called back for further questioning and at least 41 have spent between one month and a year in prison. Detainees face solitary confinement, sleep deprivation, illness as a result of privations, denial of medical treatment, unsanitary conditions in prison and forms of psychological and physical torture during interrogation.
Torture is used to pressure individuals to make confessions and to provide information on fellow Christians and religious activities. Exorbitant bail postings, some in excess of US$30,000, secure the release of individuals, along with illegal documents that religious detainees are forced to sign. Such documents demand an end to participation in Christian activities, the renunciation of faith and compliance with further questioning when summoned. Laptops and mobile phones are often confiscated during raids on private Christian homes, and are used to obtain information on the activities and identities of other Christians.
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