Pastor Nadarkhani and Wife Released, but Three Church of Iran Members Still Being Held
By Dan Wooding, Founder of ASSIST News Service
RASHT, IRAN (ANS – May 16 2016)
-- Yousef Nadarkhani, the Church of Iran pastor acquitted of apostasy
in 2012, and re-arrested along with his wife, Tina Pasandide Nadarkhani,
in Iran on Friday, May 13, 2016, have both now been released.
According
to sources linked with Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a UK-based
human rights group, Pastor and Mrs. Nadarkhani were arrested on Friday
after Iranian Ministry of Intelligence officers raided their home in
Rasht, but were released on the same day.
“The
raid on the Nadarkhani home is reported to have been part of a series
that targeted around ten Christian homes,” said a CSW spokesperson.
“Three other Christians, who were also arrested on May 13, are still in
custody.”
CSW (http://www.csw.org.uk)
says that it was informed that Yasser Mossayebzadeh was arrested during
the raid on Pastor Nadarkhani’s house. Also, the Ministry of
Intelligence officers summoned Saheb Fadaie and Mohammadreza Omidi
(Youhan) to their offices by telephone prior to raiding their homes, and
are reported to have seized their Bibles, computers and mobile phones.
It
is not the first time that the three men have been arrested. In
February 2015, they were briefly detained following similar raids.
Mohammadreza Omidi was initially detained in December 2012, during the
annual crackdown on Christian churches. In 2013, he was one of four
Christians sentenced to 80 lashes each after they were charged with
drinking alcohol during a communion service and possessing a receiver
and satellite antenna.
This
was also the second time that Pastor Nadarkhani has been re-arrested
since his release from prison in September 2012. He was initially
detained in 2009 after going to his children’s school to question the
Muslim monopoly on religious education, which he felt was
unconstitutional.
He
was charged with apostasy and sentenced to death in 2010, a decision
that was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2011. On 8 September 2012, he
was released from prison following his acquittal on apostasy charges,
but was found guilty on charges of evangelizing. The pastor was recalled
to prison on Christmas Day in 2012 to complete the remainder of his
three-year sentence, and was released once again on December 7, 2013.
CSW’s
Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said, “While CSW is relieved that Pastor
and Mrs. Nadarkhani have been freed, we remain deeply concerned for the
welfare of Yasser Mossayebzadeh, Saheb Fadaie and Mohammadreza Omidi,
who are still being held. The government must be held to account for its
harassment of Iran’s Christian community, in particular the constant
raids on homes and repeated arrests which are without basis.
“We
continue to call on Iran to fully respect its constitutional and
international human rights obligations by ensuring that justice and
equality before the law are guaranteed to all citizens, regardless of
their religion or belief.”
Photo
captions: 1) Yousef Nadarkhani with his wife, Tina Pasandide
Nadarkhani, who have both been freed. 2) Reunited: Pastor Yousef
Nadarkhani with his wife, Tina Pasandide Nadarkhani, and their children.
3) Dan Wooding outside of the Kurdistan Parliament in Erbil, Northern
Iraq.
About
the writer: Dan Wooding, 75, is an award-winning winning author,
broadcaster and journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary
parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma,
to whom he has been married for nearly 53 years. They have two sons,
Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren, who all live in the UK. Dan is
the founder and international director of the ASSIST News Service (ANS),
and the author or co-author of some 45 books. Dan has a radio show and
two TV shows, all based in Southern California. He has traveled widely
in the Middle East and his last reporting trip to the region for ANS was
to Kurdistan, Northern Iraq, including its capital city of Erbil.
*** You may republish this or any of our ANS stories with attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net).
AUSTRALIA (ANS – May 16, 2016)
-- The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Philip Freier, has increased
the pressure on Pakistan over their continued detention of Pakistan
Christian mother, Asia Bibi, under the country’s much criticized
blasphemy laws, by writing to Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Australia,
Naela Chohan, and Australia’s Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, about the
case.
The
Muslim women began to beat Asia. Then some men took her and locked her
in a room. They announced from mosque loudspeakers that she would be
punished by having her face blackened and being paraded through the
village on a donkey.
*
On Jan. 4, 2011, the governor of Punjab province, where Asia lives, was
assassinated by a member of his security team. Though a Muslim, Salmaan
Taseer had spoken out repeatedly in favor of a pardon for Asia Bibi and
for a reexamination of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws. Governor Taseer also
met with Asia in prison.
About
the writer: Dan Wooding, 75, is an award-winning winning author,
broadcaster and journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary
parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma,
to whom he has been married for nearly 53 years. They have two sons,
Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren, who all live in the UK. Dan is
the founder and international director of the ASSIST News Service (ANS),
and the author or co-author of some 45 books. Dan has a radio show and
two TV shows, all based in Southern California.
IRAN (ANS – May 13, 2016)
-- Yousef Nadarkhani, the Church of Iran pastor acquitted of apostasy
in 2012, was arrested today (May 13, 2016) in Iran along with his wife,
Tina Pasandide Nadarkhani, and fellow church member, Yasser
Mosayebzadeh.
Following
Pastor Nadarkhani’s release, his legal counsel, Mohammed Ali Dadkhah, a
prominent human rights lawyer, was jailed for ten years and disbarred
in September 2012 for “actions and propaganda against the Islamic
regime” and keeping banned books in his home. He was also banned from
practicing or teaching law for ten years. He was later released on
stringent conditions.
About
the writer: Dan Wooding, 75, is an award-winning winning author,
broadcaster and journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary
parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma,
to whom he has been married for nearly 53 years. They have two sons,
Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren, who all live in the UK. Dan is
the founder and international director of the ASSIST News Service (ANS),
and the author or co-author of some 45 books. Dan has a radio show and
two TV shows, all based in Southern California. He has traveled widely
in the Middle East and his last reporting trip to the region for ANS was
to Kurdistan, Northern Iraq, including its capital city of Erbil.
MAALOULA, SYRIA (ANS – May 13, 2016)
– Fanatical Islamic terrorists are committing “genocide” against
Christians, especially in Iraq and Syria, in a bid to annihilate all
traces of Christianity in the region.
“Jihadists
left St. George's Church in Maaoula largely intact, but they did their
damage to the interior, including some of the church's ancient icons,”
said veteran journalist, Lane.
They
also kidnapped 15 nuns and kept them captive three months before they
were freed in a prisoner exchange. Other Christians, however, were not
so fortunate.
“My daughter has nightmares and screams in the middle of the night, and said, ‘they're coming to kill us!’” said Maryam.
