02/08/2023 Iran (International Christian Concern) – Iran has a tradition of pardoning a large number of detainees on the anniversary of its 1979 revolution. This year it will take place on February 11th, and the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is said to be pardoning “tens of thousands,” but many believe that this does not include those arrested from the protest.

With Iran’s leaders still refusing to take responsibility for the unrest in their country they are claiming that many young people are “caught up” in the propaganda from the “enemy.” Without taking responsibility for the harsh and inhuman treatment they have imposed on their citizens, the unrest is likely to continue, and possibly escalate overtime.

Christian minorities still remain in a precarious position as they attempt to protect their communities after “Assyrian and Chaldean Christians in Iran [have been] warned about participating in the Iranian uprisings by the Islamic Republic’s security agencies,” according to this previous post from ICC. If Iranian authorities have not responded to the broad and united nationwide calls for reform and change with dignity, how will the Christian minorities fare under further government crackdown on the nation’s protests?

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