Shabtabnews In this dark night, I have lost my way – Arise from a corner, oh you the star of guidance.
Iran-HRM – Two Baha’i men were transferred to prison to begin serving sentences on charges related to their religious activities.
Parsa Soroushian and Rouzbeh Naseri, residents of Karaj, were detained after appearing at the Enforcement Unit of the Karaj Revolutionary Court and were transferred to the Central Penitentiary of Karaj, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).
Five other defendants in the same case began serving their sentences earlier: Naghmeh Mirza-Agha, Mahin Saadatmand, Mahshid Sefidi, Samar Masoudi, and Naser Rajab.
Rajab was sent to the Central Penitentiary, while the four women were taken to Kachoui Prison.
An appeals court reduced their sentences on September 8 to five months in prison, along with two-year travel bans and two-year bans on social activity, HRANA reported. They had originally been sentenced to 10 months in prison.
Rajab has previously faced security-related arrests.
Baha’is in Iran continue to face systematic persecution, including restrictions on education, employment, and the practice of their faith.
They are frequently accused of espionage or actions against the government, though the Baha’i International Community maintains that no evidence has ever been presented to support these claims.
Over the past two years, Iranian authorities have intensified their crackdown on the Baha’i community, imprisoning dozens on baseless charges, denying them access to higher education and employment, and confiscating or destroying their property.
In its latest annual report, Human Rights Watch described the systematic suppression and denial of basic rights to Baha’is in Iran as a crime against humanity.
