Iran has arrested at least 21 Christian converts in recent weeks, with some facing charges under a new law targeting alleged collaboration with hostile states, a rights group said.
The arrests, carried out by the Ministry of Intelligence, took place in Tehran, Rasht, Urmia, Kermanshah, Varamin, and Kerman, including one just before the recent war with Israel, according to the advocacy group Article 18.
While full details of the cases remain unclear, some involve the alleged possession of Bibles. Others may fall under a law that allows harsher punishments—including the death penalty—for individuals accused of cooperating with countries such as the United States or Israel.
Some detainees “have been threatened with charges under a newly proposed law seeking to enforce harsher punishments for those alleged to have collaborated with hostile states such as the United States or Israel,” the group said.
The bill, titled the “Intensification of Punishment for Espionage and Cooperation with the Zionist Regime and Hostile States Against National Security and Interests,” was approved by Iran’s parliament late June but faced scrutiny from the Guardian Council, which is tasked with ensuring that legislation complies with Islamic law and the Constitution.
Hadi Tahan-Nazif, spokesman for the Guardian Council, acknowledged on Friday that parts of the bill remain legally problematic.
“Since criminal laws require precision, there were ambiguities and flaws that needed to be resolved,” he said.
Earlier this month, 57 Iranian academics, jurists, and lawyers issued a public letter condemning the legislation.
Pattern of religious persecution
The new wave of arrests comes amid broader crackdowns that have targeted activists, dissidents, and members of religious minorities—including Jews, Baha’is, and Christian converts. Though Christianity is officially recognized under Iran’s constitution, the state continues to treat conversion from Islam as a threat to national security.
The continued targeting of Christian converts stands in direct violation of Article 18 of both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which guarantee freedom of religion, including the right to change one’s belief and to practice it openly or in private.