Verdict of infidel given to two Christians in Shiraz Court

ICC Note

The two Iranians were arrested following their conversion from Islam to Christianity. According to Islamic laws, leaving the Islamic faith is punishable by death.

09/04/2008 Iran (FCNN)-After 3 months of detention by the security agents, two newly converted Christians were formally charged with the crime [of] being an infidel by the judicial court of the province of Fars in Iran.

This incident coincides with the continuation of the recent wave of arrests and detentions of many other Iranian Christians in Iran that since the month of May have been rounded up by security forces of the government.

According to the reports received by FCNN, two Iranian Christian men, 53 years old Mahomood Matin-Azad and 40 years old Arash Basirat, were arrest on May 15, 2008 at a local Park by the security officers of the Ministry of Information.

Mahmmod Matin-Azad and Arash Basirat were taken to a well known detention center, known as the Block 100, located on Sepah Street and the military square in the center of Shiraz and were placed in solitary confinement for a very long time. During this time, they were subjected to inhumane and extremely lengthy interrogations. On July 15, 2008, they were transferred to the general population of detainees in the prison.

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It is noteworthy to mention that leaving the Muslim faith, according to the tenants of Islamic beliefs, is considered strictly forbidden and such person is declared an infidel and it is permissible to shed the blood of such person. Even though the Iranian Judiciary has not yet codified such crimes in its penal codes, many courts rely on the religious law and precedence to administer justice to infidels.

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Thus far, several such cases of people condemned as infidels, whose punishment is execution by hanging,  have been made public and the many international human rights groups have voiced their concerns and protests to the government of Iran.

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We ask all Christians, inside and outside of Iran, to remember these brothers and all others who are in similar conditions and to pray for their speedy release and return to their families and loved ones.

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