Three Christian converts were detained by intelligence agents in Dezful southwestern Iran on April 19. According to the Mohabat News website, the three Christians were identified as Esmael Narimanpour, Mohammad Ali Torabi, and Alireza Varak Shah. Their homes were searched and some of their personal belongings including Mohammad Ali’s mobile phone were confiscated.
“The intelligence agents went to Mohammad Ali’s store this morning and took him to his house. They searched his home and took his mobile phone, telling him he had to turn himself in to the intelligence agency,” an informed source said.
Mohammad Ali was detained when he went to the intelligence agency.
It is unclear where Esmael and Alireza have been taken or are being kept. Mohammad Ali has been detained before this.
According to Iranian law, evangelism, missionary work, and converting to Christianity can be a crime meriting a sentence of more than 10 years imprisonment. The distribution of Christian literature in Persian is currently illegal in Iran.
There is officially no crime known as apostasy in the penal code (although there was a law about it prior to 1994). The last known execution for this crime was in 1990. However, despite there being no official civil law of apostasy, judges may still convict a defendant of that crime if they rule based on religious fatwas.
Source » irannewswire