First Light Before the Dawn
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – Security forces this week arrested an Iranian pastor in Tehran and announced that his church was closed as a crackdown on Christians intensified ahead of June elections, sources said. Robert Asserian was arrested Tuesday (May 21) during a prayer meeting at his Central Assemblies of God Church after authorities entered his [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – Security forces arrested an Iranian pastor in Tehran after raiding his house and pressuring his church to close as a crackdown on Christians intensified ahead of June elections. Robert Asserian was arrested Tuesday (May 21) during a prayer meeting at his Central Assemblies of God Church after authorities entered his house [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – An Iranian-American pastor spent his 33rd birthday in solitary confinement today, suffering from untreated injuries from beatings by prisoners and officials in an Iranian prison. Saeed Abedini has spent six months in Tehran’s harsh Evin Prison, known for housing political dissidents and government protestors, where he is serving an eight-year sentence [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – Four Christian converts from Islam arrested last year for alleged evangelistic activities had to post enormous bail amounts in order to be released from an Iranian prison. Soroush Saraei, Mohammad Roghangir, and Massoud Rezaei were released at midnight March 19 after each posted $80,000 in bail, according to the Iranian media [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – Five Christian converts arrested last year in Iran went on trial on Sunday (March 10) for leaving Islam and were handed enormous bail terms. A judge in Shiraz set bail at $200,000 for Mohammed Roghangir and $80,000 for the other four. The next date for the trial has not been [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – An Iranian-American pastor imprisoned for planting house churches in Iran years ago writes that he is undergoing torture, death threats, and pressure to renounce his faith from prison officials and inmates. Saeed Abedini, 32, described his ordeal in a letter to family members that was released by his U.S.-based attorneys. [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – Iranian-American pastor Saeed Abedini was sentenced to eight years in Iran’s most notorious prison today for allegedly threatening “national security” by planting house churches years ago. Judge Pir-Abassi of Branch 26 of the Iranian Revolutionary Court sentenced the 32-year-old pastor. Sentencing in this court most likely required the approval of [...]
(Morning Star News) – Christians worldwide just celebrated the birth of Jesus. For many in the West this was a festive season marked by worship services, gift-giving and time with family and friends. But for the church in the Middle East, fear of persecution cast a long, dark shadow over the Christmas holiday. Oppression [...]
ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – An Iranian-American who will go on trial in Iran on Monday (Jan. 21) for apostasy, or leaving Islam, has been beaten and threatened with the death penalty during interrogation, sources said. Saeed Abedini, 32, will have his case handled by a judge notorious for handing death sentences to human rights [...]
Update: Youcef Nadarkhani was released on Jan. 7. See http://morningstarnews.org/other-press/ ISTANBUL (Morning Star News) – An Iranian pastor freed from prison in September after nearly three years of detainment was re-arrested on Christmas Day in a move that human rights groups consider intentional harassment for rejecting Islam. Youcef Nadarkhani, 35, had faced the death penalty [...]