Iran: Evangelical pastors given 6-year prison sentences
October 21, 2014
Three Evangelical Christian pastors in Iran have been sentenced to 6-year prison terms for their leadership roles in the house-church movement, the Fides news service reports.
Pastors Behnam Irani and Matthias Haghnejad and Deacon Silas Rabbani are appealing their sentences. Pastor Irani, who had been previously convicted of “acting against the State” in 2011, had initially faced a possible death penalty, but the charges against him were reduced.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide has charged that the sentences against pastors violate “international covenants guaranteeing freedom of religion or belief, to which Iran is party.”
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Posted by: 1Jn416 -
Oct. 22, 2014 12:23 PM ET USA
Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men persecute you and revile you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely on my account; rejoice and be glad, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you. Mt 5.
