Iran’s Baha’i minority community facing increasing arrests, torture and execution fears |
PARIS (AFP) — Peyvand Naimi was at work on January 8 when they came for him.
Naimi, a member of Iran’s Baha’i religious minority from Kerman in southeastern Iran, was hauled away to prison, accused of offenses he could not have committed and subjected to torture, according to supporters.
When allowed a brief call with his parents, he said: “‘If they execute me, do not be sad, my soul will be free of the cage of my body,'” a close relative based outside Iran familiar with the details of the case told AFP, asking not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.
He is among dozens of Baha’is arrested since nationwide protests broke out in January, representatives say, in one of the most ferocious crackdowns against the minority since the early years of the Islamic revolution.
The Baha’i faith is a monotheistic religion dating back to the early 19th century.
By far the largest non-Muslim religious minority in Iran, the Baha’i have suffered decades of persecution and their faith is not recognized by the Islamic Republic.
They have repeatedly faced accusations of being Israeli agents, in what the community regards as groundless stigmatization during times of trouble.
A major faith center and pilgrimage site is in Haifa in northern Israel, but its establishment dates back to well before the creation of the modern State of Israel.
“This is a the type of escalation against the Baha’i that we have not seen for decades,” Simin Fahandej, representative of the Baha’i International Community (BIC) at the UN, told AFP.
She said that since protests erupted in January, 77 Baha’is have been arrested, with the trend continuing throughout the Middle East war.
“The scapegoating is not new, as it happens at every moment of crisis in Iran. But the pattern of state broadcast forced confessions through intense torture shows Iran’s new tactics in disseminating hate speech to justify further persecution against the Baha’is,” she added.
Amnesty International said persecution of Baha’is has intensified since the 12-day war between Iran and........