ICC Note: In November, two members of an Iranian house church were summoned to intelligence offices, arrested and subsequently jailed in Evin Prison. Majidreza Souzanchi Kushani was initially placed inside Ward 209, which is controlled by the Intelligence Ministry and one of the harshest wards within a notoriously harsh prison. He has recently been transferred to a separate ward. The other prisoner, Fatimeh Mohammadi, is in the women’s ward. Women who have experienced Evin Prison have frequently expressed outrage at the institutionalization of rape within the prison.

02/19/2018 Iran (MEC) – Iranian Christians request prayer for two Christian converts who have been held in Evin Prison since their arrest on 17th November 2017.

Majidreza Souzanchi Kushani and Fatimeh Mohammadi were members of a house church meeting in Tehran. They were summoned to intelligence offices on 17th November 2017 and arrested.

Majidreza has been charged with membership of evangelistic groups and conducting evangelism under Article 498 of the penal code, which criminalizes the establishment of any group that aims to “disrupt national security”, in which case he could face between two and ten years in prison if found guilty. However, it is also possible that he will be charged under Article 500 “whoever engages in any type of propaganda against the Islamic Republic of Iran or in support of opposition groups and associations, shall be sentenced to three months to one year of imprisonment”.

Majidreza was recently transferred from Ward 209 of Evin prison, which is under the control of the intelligence services, to ward 4. Fatimeh is in the women’s ward of Evin Prison, Tehran.

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