Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan returns to prison, three days after his wedding

The wedding appears to have been conducted in the prison carpark

Iran Wire, August 26, 2020. –

Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan (اردشیر فناییان), a 32-year-old Bahai from Semnan who is serving a six year sentence for his beliefs, was granted a short prison furlough recently. During the furlough, he married Golrokh Firuzeyan (گلرخ فیروزیان), also from Semnan, who has also served two prison terms for her beliefs. He requested an extension to his furlough, but this was denied by the Ministry of ‘Intelligence.’

Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan was born in Semnan Prison. His parents were both imprisoned in 1983, for adhering to the Bahai Faith, and Ardeshir was born in the prison in 1988. He was arrested early in 2013 and sentenced to 8 months in prison. Golrokh Firuzeyan was among the young Bahais arrested and sentenced at that time, and was sentenced to 6 months in prison. They were charged with various offenses, but eventually sentenced for “propaganda against the regime.” Both began their sentences on January 10, 2014. When Ardeshir had completed his sentence, he was sent to do military service. Golrokh’s sisters, Yalda Firouzeyaan (یلدا فیروزیان) and Shidrokh Firuzeyan (شیدرخ) have also served six-month prison sentences. Yalda currently faces another sentence, of two years and six months. Their father, Hadjbar Firuzeyaan (هژبر فیروزیان), served a 40-day sentence in 2014, charged with libel against an agent of the Ministry of Intelligence. He had complained to the judicial authorities that one of his daughters was beaten in prison. When they took no action, he wrote to the President of the Islamic Republic, describing the beating. He was charged with libel and fined, but refused to pay the fine and was sent to prison instead.

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Three Bahais in Semnan given long sentences

Voice of America, October 28, 2019. –

The Revolutionary Court in Semnan has sentenced three Bahais who were arrested on April 30 to ten years in prison on charges of “membership of illegal groups acting against national security” and “acting against national security through propaganda and organizational activities.” Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan (اردشیر فناییان), who is 30 years old, has been sentenced to ten years in prison and one year exile in the town of Khash in Sistan and Baluchestan Province; Behnaam Eskandreyan (بهنام اسکندریان) and Yalda Firouzeyaan (یلدا فیروزیان), aged 20, have been sentenced to five years in prison and two years’ exclusion from the city of Semnan. They were arrested by teams of four to six masked agents from the Ministry of Intelligence in Semnan, in simultaneous raids on their homes at 8 a.m. on April 30.

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One arrest in Tehran

Voice of America, October 5, 2019. –

`Abbaas Taa’ef (عباس طائف), a Bahai from Tehran, was arrested by agents from the Ministry of Intelligence on September 27. The agents searched his home and workplace and seized a laptop, mobile phone and some ID documents and some of his personal effects. As previously reported, security agents raided a number of other Bahai homes in Karaj and Tehran on the same day, and Mr. Zafar (آقای ظفر) was arrested. `Abbaas Taa’ef (or another Bahai with the same name) was arrested in Tehran in connection with the raids on the Bahai Open University (BIHE) in 2012.

Update: Iran Press Watch adds that his office, his workplace, has been sealed by the authorities, and that he suffers from heart disease, kidney disease, and diabetes.

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Injustice and extortion in Semnan’s prison

Iran Wire, June 1, 2019. –
A month has passed since three young Bahais were arrested by teams of four to six masked agents from the Ministry of Intelligence in Semnan, in simultaneous raids on their homes at 8 a.m. on April 30. What little news is available is not good. It appears they are to be charged with “propaganda against the regime” and “undermining national security,” and they have not been allowed to have a lawyer. There are also reports that several other Bahais in Semnan have recently been threatened with arrest.

The family of Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan (اردشیر فناییان), who is 30 years old, have had no news from him: he has not been allowed even a short telephone call. His mother died in an accident a few months ago, and his father is hospitalized due to kidney problems, so his sister and small child have travelled over 300 km, from Gonbad-Kavus, to follow up on his arrest. Thus far the Ministry of Intelligence and judiciary have not given her any information about her brother’s situation. Mr. Fenaa’eyan was previously arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence and held for over 50 days before being freed on bail. A Revolutionary Court sentenced him to nine months in prison [other reports say, 8 months]. He began his sentence in January 2014. Immediately after his release, the Ministry of Intelligence sent him to the army to undertake his military service.

Behnaam Eskandaareyan (بهنام اسکندریان), previously reported as Behnaam Eskandaraani (بهنام اسکندرانی), is 25 years old. Six days after his arrest, in a brief telephone conversation, he told his family that he had been beaten, and asked them to bring two million tumans ($US 475) to the prison. When his family went to the prison, they found that he had been transferred from solitary confinement to the quarantine section, where he was left alone with a hashish addict who beat him up to extort money. The guards, who could hear what was going on and had video surveillance as well, did nothing. When the beating and extortion had been confirmed by the authorities, his family asked for him to be referred to the prison’s medical officer, but the prison authorities said that Behnaam was an adult and could ask himself. However, except for the short telephone call for extortion that they had facilitated, Behnaam has been held incommunicado and cannot ask for anything — not even a lawyer.

The third detainee, Yalda Firouzeyaan (یلدا فیروزیان), is 20 years old. She is reported to have been transferred about 10 days ago, from Ministry of Intelligence detention to the general prison for women, where she is held alone. In Semnan, and in some other prisons, Bahai prisoners are kept apart from others because of a widespread superstition in Iran that Bahais are ‘unclean.’ [And I would add: because Bahai prisoners who have been held together with other prisoners of conscience have sometimes demonstrated to their fellow-prisoners that the anti-Bahai propaganda in Iran’s official media is hogwash, to the extent that they have become friends with the Bahais ~ Sen.] After five days in the general prison, she was allowed a telephone call with her family. The family have asked to visit her, but were told that this is not allowed. Her sisters Golrokh and Shidrokh Firuzeyan (شیدرخ و گلرخ فیروزیان), were arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence on March 12, 2013 and February 12, respectively. Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan was arrested at the same time. The sisters were held by the Ministry for 40 days. They were charged with “propaganda against the regime” and initially sentenced to 9 months in prison, reduced to 6 months by the review court. They served their sentences and were released in May 2014. Their father, Hadjbar Firuzeyaan (هژبر فیروزیان), served a 40-day sentence in 2014, charged with libel against an agent of the Ministry of Intelligence. He had complained to the judicial authorities that one of his daughters was beaten in prison. When they took no action, he wrote to the President of the Islamic Republic, describing the beating. He was charged with libel and fined, but refused to pay the fine and was sent to prison instead.

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Three Bahai youth arrested in Semnan

HRANA, April 30, 2019. –

Behnaam Eskandaraani (بهنام اسکندرانی), Yalda Firouzeyaan (یلدا فیروزیان) and Ardeshir Fenaa’eyan (اردشیر فناییان), three young Bahais from Semnan, were arrested by agents from the Ministry of Intelligence on the morning of April 30. The agents also seized some of their personal effects. Mr. Fenaa’eyan was previously sentenced to 8 months in prison. During his time in prison he was obliged to promise that — contrary to a legal provision — he would present himself for military service when he was released from prison. The whereabouts of the three detainees is not known at present.

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Ruhiyyeh Narimaan released in Shiraz: a reason for hope?

HRANA, March 10, 2019, with editorial commentary. –

Ruhiyyeh Narimaan (روحیه نریمان) was provisionally released from prison in Shiraz on March 9. Her sentence has been put in abeyance pending a sitting of the Provincial Review Court. Mrs. Narimaan and her husband Farzaad Delaaraam (فرزاد دلارام) were originally sentenced to five years in prison by the notorious Judge Sadati ( قاضی ساداتی), but the Review Court reduced this to two years and six months for Ruhiyyeh Nariman and one year for Faarzaad Delaaraam. They were arrested in Shiraz on October 8, 2018, to begin serving their sentences, so she has served only five months of her 30-month sentence. Her husband was released in early February, benefiting from an amnesty for some prisoners of conscience marking the fortieth anniversary of the 1979 Revolution.

Mrs. Nariman’s release is not related to the amnesty, and the re-review of a sentence already determined by the Review Court is highly unusual. I speculate — optimistically — that her release relates to a January ruling by the Alborz Province Review Court, in the case of Liza Tebyanian Enayati (لیزا تبیانیان ( عنایتی), that teaching the Bahai Faith is not equivalent to “propaganda against the regime.” Mrs. Enayati was acquitted and released. Part of the verdict issued by Branch 12 of the Alborz Province Review Court, headed by Judge Ali Badri (قاضی علی بدری), states: “The propagation of the Bahaism does not constitute propaganda against the regime. Basically, in the law, belief in Bahai Faith has not been criminalized so as to be able to prosecute or punish anyone under this charge…” Another part of the proceedings states: “Basically religious propagation, which is not considered to be against the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran and its sovereignty, is not considered a crime; [considering it a crime] is contrary to the Constitutional rights of citizenship.”

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Puya Tabayaniyan released early in Semnan

HRANA, March 2, 2019. –

Mr. Puya Tabayaniyan (پویا تبیانیان), a Bahai who began as sentence of seven years in the Central Prison of Semnan on December 22, 2012, has been released unexpectedly after six years and two months. While prisoners in Iran generally are granted early release for good behaviour, this provision does not usually apply to Bahais. He was granted prison furlough for a few days, and when he returned to prison on March 2, he was told that he was free to go.

Mr. Tabayaniyan was first arrested on March 8, 2009 and held in solitary confinement for two months, during which he was interrogated by Judge Dowlat-Khah (قاضی دولت خواه). He was sentenced to two years in prison, and was granted a conditional release on April 29, 2010, with a six-month suspended sentence.

Then he was one of four Bahais who were arrested in Semnan on March 12, 2011. He was released on bail on April 3, and re-arrested on June 11. This was apparently for further interrogation, as reports from that time indicate that he released ten days later, on June 21, 2011. He was charged with undermining national security and propaganda against the regime, and sentenced to six and a half years in prison by Judge `Eyn al-Kamaal (قاضی عین الکمال). The six month suspended sentence was added to this.

In January, 2016, another prisoner released from the Central Prison of Semnan reported that Mr. Tabayaniyan was in solitary confinement in the prison. The reason and duration of this are not reported.

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Bahai murdered in Semnan, and his body burnt

Bahai News (Persian), January 9, 2017.

Ahmad Fana’ian ( احمد فناییان), an elderly Bahai farmer living in Semnan Province, was murdered on the night of January 7, and his body was burnt to such an extent that DNA tests were required to identify the victim. It is not clear whether there was a religious motive for the murder.

A Muslim friend who was in the are noticed that Mr. Fana’ian’s sheep were wandering, and that his car stood with the door open, and the key in the ignition, and found no trace of him. He called Mr. Fana’ian’s brother, who tried to contact him several times and then came with his son to the farm, where they found his burned body. Four farm workers (Afghan shepherds) are also missing, but there is no apparent motive for the murder. [The ‘Campaign‘ site suggests that the shepherds are suspects: it seems more likely to me that the murderers told the Afghani workers to make themselves scarce, before the murder. Robbery could hardly be a motive, since the murder took place not in the family home (in the city) but in a shelter on the grazing lands where there would be nothing much worth stealing, and because the sheep and car were not stolen. ~ Sen]

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Puya Tabayaniyan in solitary confinement in Semnan

Bahai News, January 18, 2016.

Reports indicate that Mr. Puya Tabayaniyan (پویا تبیانیان), a Bahai who began as sentence of six and a half years in the Central Prison of Semnan on December 22, 2012, is being held in solitary confinement. The information apparently came to light after the release of Afshin Eqani (افشین ایقانی), another Bahai prisoner in Semnan, on December 25, 2015.

Mr. Tabayaniyan was arrested on March 8, 2009 and held in solitary confinement for two months, during which he was interrogated by Judge Dowlat-Khah (قاضی دولت خواه). He was sentenced to two years in prison (this report says, 2 years and 6 months), and was granted a conditional release on April 29, 2010. He was one of four Bahais who were arrested in Semnan on March 12, 2011. He released on bail on April 3, and re-arrested on June 11. This was apparently for further interrogation, as reports from that time indicate that he released ten days later, on June 21, 2011. He was charged with undermining national security and propaganda against the regime, and sentenced to six and a half years in prison by Judge `Eyn al-Kamaal (قاضی عین الکمال).

The report does not indicate why he would be held in solitary confinement, or when this began.

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Stock seized from a workshop belonging to a Bahai in Semnan

HRANA, November 8, 2015.

On November 1, judicial officers went to the cut-glass manufacturing shop belonging to Afrasiab Khanjani (افراسیاب خانجانی), a Bahai from Semnan, and seized his entire stock. In 2012, a lens-making workshop belonging to Mr. Khanjani was closed, and his trading licence was revoked.

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Susan Tabyaniyan released from prison

HRANA, November 3, 2015.

Susan Tabyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan who has been serving a one-year sentence in Isfahan prison, was released from prison on November 2. She was charged with propaganda against the regime, opposition to the regime and propaganda in support of opposition groups, in the form of giving interviews to foreign media about the economic situation of the Bahais in Iran, and began her sentence on December 24, 2014. This was her second prison sentence: in May 2010 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the regime and membership of a Bahai organisation. After serving almost 14 months in Evin prison, she was one of the prisoners granted clemency to mark Eid al-Fitr, on August 27, 2011. She was arrested again on May 31, 2014, released on bail on July 15, and sentenced to one year in prison on September 11. She has two children.

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Agricultural land confiscated in Semnan

HRANA, October 17, 2015.

Fifty hectares of land and the livestock on it, belonging to Zia’ullah Muta`arifi (ضیاء الله متعارفی), a 65-year-old Bahai from Semnan, was confiscated on October 15. The decision was made at a court hearing in Semnan, attended by officials from the Ministry of Agriculture in Semnan, the Public Prosecutor, and representatives of the security forces. Mr. Muta`arifi has been working this land since 1982, and purchased it in 1999, paying in installments. He was told his title would be confirmed once he paid a fee to confirm the area and improvements, and this last cheque had been cleared. But afterwards, the sellers denied having sold the land. A lower court decided against Mr. Muta`arifi, and the case was referred to the Provincial court of review. According to Mr. Muta`arifi, the review court judge initially overturned the lower court ruling, but later said that this was a mistake and referred the case to another court, which ruled that the land should be confiscated. Mr. Muta`arifi has been allowed to retain 3552 square meters, which he says is not suitable for use due to its location. The confiscated land had 17,000 mature trees and vines: pistachio nuts, olives, pine trees, grapes, pomegranates and others. Mr. Muta`arifi was not permitted to remove his belongings and implements from the land.

Mr. Muta`arifi had also written to an advisor to the President, who passed his letter to the Ministry of Agriculture, who said that this was a political case, and they could not interfere.

Mr. Muta`arifi introduced the first pressurized irrigation system in the province, and planted the first olive trees. He has received several awards from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Department of Agricultural Development, and a recognition from the international Food and Agriculture Organisation. According to another report, by the Campaign against the harassment of Bahais, the farm employed about seven staff, some of whom lived on the land with their families.

Mr. Muta`arifi said that his only concern was to serve the people of Iran, and his only fear was that the trees would be left to dry out and die. In January, 2010, Mr. Muta`arifi’s license to run an animal husbandry unit was revoked by the Department of Agricultural Development, who levelled accusations which Mr. Muta`arifi denied.

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Officials shut off ‘Bahai’ water supply to Dazgareh township

Iran Press Watch, August 26, 2015.

On Monday 24 August, officials shut off the water supply for residents of the small town of Dazgareh in Semnan province. The water comes from a well dug with a legal permit 25 years ago, and given to the town by the Khanjani Family. The family are Bahais. The police, Revolutionary Guards Corps, and Intelligence and Security agents of the water authority and other officials, including Mr. Ehsani, head of the Intelligence service, were in attendance. They had a special expedited order to destroy the well, and used heavy construction machinery. Work continued to 2:00 am in the morning.

Several members of the Khanjani family have been imprisoned for their Bahai beliefs, their property has been confiscated and factories and businesses belonging to family members have been closed down. Intelligence and Security agents had previously destroyed a dirt dam built with a legal permit for the purpose of generating electricity, cutting electric power to the area. One piece of land that was given to one of the members of this family thirty years ago was unjustly seized and given to the Revolutionary Guards. Officials have also destroyed their home, and the executive committee has issued an order to confiscate their lands and farms. The Municipal Security Council of the province, in the presence of the Governor Vakili, appointed by the Rouhani administration of “Prudence and Hope,” have declared the entire area in which the family’s ancestors have lived for generations a military zone. Revolutionary Guard monitors criss-cross the area, and only particular individuals may visit the family property and stay a few hours, or at most a few days. The pressures started during the Ahmadinejad government and continue to the present.

Full translation at Iran Press Watch
Persian report at Campaign against harassment of Bahais

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Three Bahai businesses shut down in Sari

HRANA, May 25, 2014.

Local authorities in Sari shut down three businesses run by three Bahais, on May 24, because they had been closed on Bahai holy days. The businesses are a shop selling colours, run by Ziullah Khushbin (ضیاالله خوشبین), the wood turning workshop of Kemal Akbari (کمال اکبری), and a toiletries shop run by Ehsanullah Sana’i (احسان الله سنایی). Recently 12 Bahais in the city of Rafsanjan had their businesses closed by local authorities, because they were shut on the three Bahai holy days of Ridvan, which this year fell on April 21, April 29 and May 2. Regulations allow local authorities to shut down any business that is closed, unannounced, for more than 15 days in a year. However there are less than 15 Holy Days in the Bahai calendar, and in any case the Bahai owners normally inform local authorities of upcoming Holy Days.

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Demolition of the house of a Bahai prisoner

Rooz Online (text in Persian and English), April 25, 2015. (Abbreviated)

In Semnan, the vacation home of Jamaledin Khanjani (جمال الدین خانجانی), one of the seven imprisoned ‘Yaran’ (national facilitators for the Bahai community in Iran), has been demolished by security agents. According to a member of the family, one day they were told that they had 48 hours to vacate their house and the next day, even though they had obtained an order to delay the demolition from the Supreme Court, their house, which was situated in the middle of an agricultural field, was bulldozed.

Jamaledin Khanjani has been in prison since 2009 without leave. He has been sentenced to 20 years of prison. Foad Khanjani, his grandson and Navid Khanjani, another member of the Khanjani family are also in prison.

A member of the family told Rooz (i.e., Rooz Online) that pressure on their family has been growing and systematic since the detention of Jamaledin Khanjani. The family said that the house had been built with the proper construction permits 18 years ago and was the residence of the family. “The land has a deed that goes back a 100 years, but the authorities say the owner is unknown and the deed is not recognized. They also find fault with the house and say that building over extends the permit,” they said. “Even though they gave us 48 hours to vacate, they destroyed 270 square meters of the house and claimed that the construction area exceeded the construction permit. But a court had earlier specifically ruled on this in their favor.” A family member said that the family did not receive any money from the government to build the house or develop the land, which had over 40 hectares of fruit trees. “But when the time for fruit picking comes, they block the road to the farm, depriving us of taking the 200 to 300 tons of fruit to the market. A few years ago they destroyed the water reservoir we had built for the farm even though we had obtained all the necessary government permits. We had a 30-year rental agreement for husbandry which they violated and forced us to sell our livestock.” … “Even though we had legally owned this land for over 200 years, … they set up a security post in the region and began searching all vehicles and frisking individuals. My 85-year old mother had to have a special permit to go around and travel. The Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Intelligence Office of Semnan announced the area to be a military zone and then established a post close to the house that they have demolished. We, our animals and even our plants are not free from invasions. They prevented us from taking our livestock to warner regions, resulting in a number of deaths.” … “Many of our family members are Muslims and we live together, participate in each other’s ceremonies. But it is the Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Intelligence Agency’s branch that is harsh on us. We really do not know for how long they intend to continue this.”

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Behfar Khanjani free

I Free my Iran, April 5, 2015.

Behfar Khanjani (بهفر خانجانی), a Bahai prisoner of conscience serving a four-year sentence in Seman’s central prison, was freed from prison on April 4, at the end of his sentence. He was arrested on January 6, 2010, and held for 25 days in solitary confinement. He was held in prison for another month and released on bail on March 1, 2010. He began serving his sentence, for membership of illegal Bahai groups and attending Bahai prayer meetings and the 19th-day ‘Feast,’ on June 22, 2011. His sentence was later extended by one year for “propaganda against the regime,” but from today’s report it appears that this sentence has been served concurrently, or has not yet been implemented. Mr. Khanjani suffers from an incurable medical condition, and his condition is fragile. He was given a brief medical leave in January 2012.

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Bahai libraries banned, closed, in four cities in Iran

Maf News, February 24, 2015.

A recent memo signed by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (pasdaran) states that Bahais are not permitted to own or manage libraries. In recent days, the Basij militia in the cities of Semnan and Sari (in the North), and in Yazd and Kerman (South-central Iran) has worked with the Pasdaran’s cultural surveillance agency to close libraries owned or managed by Bahais. The relevant documents were signed by local security forces. Six libraries in Semnan and Yazd have been closed, [Note: these are not necessarily libraries of Bahai books for use by Bahais: literacy programmes, especially in rural areas, have long been a focus of Baha’i social work, in Iran and elsewhere. There is already a long-standing practice of confiscating Bahai books and images found in Bahai homes during raids: no new policy would be required to close such personal libraries. ~ Sen]

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Behfar Khanjani denied family visits

HRANA, January 23, 2015.

Behfar Khanjani (بهفر خانجانی), a Bahai prisoner of conscience serving a five-year sentence in Seman’s central prison, has been denied the right to receive family visits as a punishment for writing a letter to Dr. Jahangiri, the head of Iran’s Prison Association. Mr. Khanjani was initially given a four-year prison sentence for membership of illegal Bahai groups and attending Bahai prayer meetings and the 19th-day ‘Feast.’ His sentence was later extended by one year for “propaganda against the regime.” Mr. Khanjani suffers from an incurable medical condition which is at an advanced stage, and his condition is fragile. He was given a brief medical leave in January 2012.

Although the Warden of the Central Prison in Semnan and the supervising judge approved an end-of-sentence furlough for Mr. Khanjani, Mr. Asyabi, the City Attorney of Semnan, and Mr. Arab, who is in charge of all the prisons in Semnan, said that he was barred from receiving a furlough. Mr. Khanjani then wrote to Dr. Jahangiri, criticizing the decision and saying that it breached his legal and human rights. Officers at the Semnan central prison then criticized Mr. Khanjani and told him that he would be denied family visits as a punishment.

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Susan Tabyaniyan … (corrected)

This news item has been removed while the facts are checked. Contradictory reports indicate that Susan Tabyaniyan has received visits from her children ~Sen

Susan Tabyaniyan begins another prison sentence

Fariba Kamalabadi (facebook page), December 25.

Susan Tabyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan, has been summoned to begin serving a one-year sentence. This is her second prison sentence: in May 2010 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the regime and membership of a Bahai organisation. After serving almost 14 months in Evin prison, she was one of the prisoners granted clemency to mark Eid al-Fitr, on August 27, 2011. She was arrested again on May 31, 2014, released on bail on July 15, and sentenced to one year in prison on September 11.

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Sentence of Susan Tabyaniyan confirmed

HRANA, November 5, 2014.

The review court has confirmed the sentence of Susan Tabyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan who was arrested on May 31, 2014. She was sentenced to one year in prison and the confiscation of all possessions connected to the Bahai Faith by Judge Amiri, sitting in Bench 1 of the Revolutionary Court in Semnan.

Susan Tabyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan who was arrested on May 31, 2014, has been sentenced to one year in prison. Her trial took place on August 7. After her arrest she was held for 45 days before being released on bail.

Mrs. Tabyaniyan had a shop in Semnan until her arrest in April, 2009. In May 2010 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the regime and membership of a Bahai organisation. After serving almost 14 months in Evin prison (some of them in the methadone user’s wing), she was one of the prisoners granted clemency to mark Eid al-Fitr, on August 27, 2011. She was rearrested on May 31, 2014, and released on bail 6 weeks later.

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Susan Tabyaniyan sentenced: 1 year in prison

PCED (facebook), September 11, 2014.

Susan Tabyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan who was arrested on May 31, 2014, has been sentenced to one year in prison. Her trial took place on August 7. After her arrest she was held for 45 days before being released on bail.

Mrs. Tabyaniyan, who has two small children, had a shop in Semnan until her arrest in April, 2009. In May 2010 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the regime and membership of a Bahai organisation. After serving almost 14 months in Evin prison, she was one of the prisoners granted clemency to mark Eid al-Fitr, on August 27 2011.

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Special conditions for allowing Bahai burials in Semnan

HRANA, AUGUST 29, 2014.

The recent burial of a Bahai in Semnan, in the section of the cemetery reserved for Bahais, has revealed that new rules have been drawn up. The family of the deceased was required to sign a commitment to follow six rules. These stipulate that the Bahai gravestones may only show a name and the dates of birth and death, that the Bahais may not beautify the area around the graves with plants or build a wall around the Bahai cemetery, or erect new buildings around the facility where bodies are washed, that they may not have any words or images on the graves or in the cemetery, and that the Bahai gravestones must be level with the ground, without any raised portions.

[Although the discriminatory conditions are regrettable, they do allow burials in accordance with Bahai rites. The situation in Tabriz is much worse. The bodies of Bahais have buried by the authorities, without being washed and without coffins, in the town of Miandoab, about 160 km south of Tabriz. ~Sen]

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One arrest in Semnan

HRANA, August 26, 2014. (updated)

Noushadhar Khanjani ( نوش‌آذر خانجانی), a Bahai from Semnan who was visiting family in Semnan, was arrested by security forces this morning. He has been interviewed by the Ministry of Intelligence several times in the past months, on various pretexts, and is presently free on bail and having provided a surety. His father, Afrasiab Khanjani (افراسیاب خانجانی ) has been subject to pressure from the security forces for some time, and has had much of his property confiscated, including a factory for making spectacles. The family have been told that Noushadhar will be transferred to Tehran tomorrow.

On August 13, Babak Mobasher ( بابک مبشر ) and Alaeddin Khanjani (علا‌ءالدین خانجانی), known as Niki, two more members of the Khanjani family, and some of their Bahai employees, were arrested in Tehran and have been accused of smuggling spectacles [!]. They are being held in Evin prison. Noushadhar Khanjani’s grandfather Jamalludin Khanjani (جمال الدین خانجانی) is one of the seven ‘Yaran’ (Bahai national facilitators) who are now in the seventh year of 20-year sentences, and his cousin Navid Khanjani (نوید خانجانی) is serving a 12-year sentence for promoting equal access to education. Both are in in Raja’i Shahr prison. Fo’ad Khanjani (فواد خانجانی) and Behfar Khanjani (بهفر خانجانی) are serving 4-year sentences in Raja’i Shahr and Semnan prisons respectively. Leva Khanjani and Omid Firuzeyan, two more grandchildren of Jamalludin Khanjani, have recently been released from prison. [And all this effort by the judiciary, intelligence services and prison authorities serves absolutely no purpose: they are Bahais when they go into prison and they are still Bahais when they come out. Hats off to a most illustrious family! ~sen]

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`Adel Fana’ayan freed unexpectedly

HRANA, June 19, 2014

`Adel Fana’ayan (عادل فنائیان), a Bahai from Semnan, has been freed on parole. He was serving a six-year sentence in Semnan’s central prison, which he began on June 11, 2012, meaning that he served just one third of his sentence. He was charged with propaganda against the regime and undermining state security. This was his sixth period of imprisonment. The license of his business in Semnan has also been revoked.

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Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.

Susan Tebyaniyan’s irregular detention continues

HRANA, June 17, 2014

Susan Tebyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan, was arrested 17 days ago in her home, and has been held since then, without clarification of her status, in Semnan’s central prison. She is being kept separate from the other female prisoners. An informed source told HRANA that there is a policy of keeping Bahai women separate from other prisoners, and Susan Tebyaniyan is the only Bahai woman held in that prison, she is being kept in isolation. She was detained on a warrant allowing 7 days detention, but after 17 days she has neither been freed nor taken to court.

Mrs. Tebyaniyan, who has two small children, had a shop in Semnan until her arrest in April, 2009. In May 2010 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the regime and membership of a Bahai organisation. After serving almost 14 months in prison, she was one of the prisoners granted clemency to mark Eid al-Fitr, on August 27 2011.

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Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.

Susan Tebyaniyan arrested in Semnan

HRANA, June 1, 2014

Susan Tebyaniyan (سوسن تبیانیان), a Bahai from Semnan, was arrested in her home on the evening of May 31st. Agents from the Ministry of Intelligence searched her home, seized a computer and religious books and images, and arrested her. Mrs. Tebyaniyan, who has two small children, had a shop in Semnan until her arrest in April, 2009. In May 2010 she was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of propaganda against the regime and membership of a Bahai organisation. She began her sentence in Evin prison on July 1st, 2010. After serving almost 14 months in prison, she was one of the prisoners granted clemency to mark Eid al-Fitr, on August 27 2011.

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Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.

Golrokh and Shidrokh Firuzeyan free

Yaran-Iran (facebook), May 19, 2014

Golrokh and Shidrokh Firuzeyan (شیدرخ و گلرخ فیروزیان), who began serving 6-month sentences in Semnan’s central prison on January 8, 2014, have been released. They send greetings to their families and to the long-suffering Bahais of Iran, and hope for the freedom of all those who are imprisoned for no crime. Ardeshir Fena’eyan (اردشیر فناییان), who was arrested and tried with them, was sentenced to 8 months in prison. They were charged with various offenses, but eventually sentenced for “propaganda against the regime.”

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Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.

Five Bahai youth in Semnan sent to military service

HRANA, February 19, 2014

In the past two months, five young Bahais in Semnan have been arrested and sent to military service, on the orders of a judge (or in a previous report, an assistant prosecutor) known as Mr. Zaman. HRANA states that the military call-up law had been disused for some years, and that its application to the Bahais has been initiated by the Ministry of Intelligence.

Al Monitor: Attack on Baha’i family in Iran raises questions of immunity
Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/02/iran-bahai-attacks-accountability-police-discrimination

The names of the young Bahai men sent on military service in this way are given as follows:

Erfan Ehsani (عرفان احسانی): at the time of his arrest, he was made to promise that he would serve in the military after completing his time in prison. he was sentenced to one year in prison, which he began serving on October 30, 2012. After his release on parole, he was drafted into the army although his wife and their baby were in prison.

Soroush Firuzayan (سروش فیروزیان): after his home was raided, he was arrested and sent on military service.

Ardeshir Fana’ayan (اردشیر فناییان) was serving a 9-month sentence in Semnan prison. On completing his sentence, he was sent to do military service.

Omid Pirasteh (امید پیراسته): presently doing his military service.

Na’im Hedayati (نعیم هدایتی): presently doing his military service.

Another Bahai youth, Avarakhsh Hedayati (اورخش هدایتی), was reported among the Bahai youths who were arrested in November, 2013, but has been exempted from military service.

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Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.

Punished for complaining: Hadjabr Firuzeyan begins his sentence

HRANA, January 26, 2014

On January 25, Hadjabr Firuzeyan (هژبر فیروزیان) reported to Semnan prison to begin serving a 40-day sentence. He is the father of Golrokh and Shidrokh Firuzeyan (شیدرخ و گلرخ فیروزیان), who began serving 6-month sentences in Semnan prison on January 8, 2014. His name has also been reported as Hadjir Firuzeyan (هژیر فیروزیان) and on this blog as Hadjbar Firuzeyan. He complained of the physical abuse of Golrokh by a Ministry of Intelligence interrogator. During one of her interrogations, the interrogators were harsh. One interrogator stood behind her and pulled her against the back of the chair, leaving her with severe back pains and a bleeding nose. Mr. Firuzeyan informed the officer handling the case, the Prosecutor and the Chief Justice. When there was no response from them, he wrote to the President of Iran, detailing the treatment of his daughter, and also tried to present this letter to the President when he was visiting Semnan. [From the dates, it would appear this refers to President Rouhani, who promised that human rights would be respected in Iran but has not been able to improve the situation at all.] Mr. Firuzeyan was arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence and held in solitary confinement for some time. He was later fined 12 million rials (350 euros, $US 480), which was confirmed on appeal, for defaming the head of the Semnan office of the Ministry of Intelligence, Mohammad Reza Hashemian (محمد رضا هاشمیان). He has chosen to serve 40 days in prison rather than pay the fine.

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Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.