Seven Baha’i citizens living in Shiraz, according to a ruling by the city’s first branch of the Revolutionary Court, have been sentenced to a total of 39 years in prison on charges of “propaganda activities against the regime and membership in anti-regime groups with the aim of disrupting the country’s security”. The initial trial for the case of these citizens was held on May 10th, 2020.
According to the Campaign for Defense of Political and Civil Prisoners, seven Baha’i citizens, Navid Bazmandegan, Bahareh Ghaderi, Niloufar Hakimi, Elaheh Samizadeh, Soodabeh Haghighat, Nora Pourmardayan and Ehsanullah Mahboob Rah-e_vafa, were sentenced to 39 years in prison by the Shiraz Revolutionary Court.
According to the litigation issued by the First Branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Shiraz, presided over by Judge Sadati, regarding this case, Navid Bazmandegan, Bahareh Ghaderi, , Elaheh Samizadeh, Soodabeh Haghighat, Nora Pourmardayan were each sentenced to six years in prison, Ehsanullah Mahboob Rah-e_vaf to one year, and Niloufar Hakimi to eight years in prison. Niloufar Hakimi has also been sentenced to five years in prison by a criminal court.
These Baha’i citizens were arrested in May 2018 by Shiraz Intelligence Service agents and taken to the detention center of this agency, named No. 100. Later they were released temporarily on bail.
The constitution of the Islamic Republic does not recognize the Baha’i as a religion and the Baha’is of Iran have been deprived of basic rights such as the right to education and work and the religious ceremonies and festivals activities. Detention and imprisonment of Baha’is have continued for four decades. A number of Baha’i leaders and believers have also been executed in the early years of the Islamic Republic’s establishment, and their property have confiscated.