Iran Escalates Persecution of Religious Minorities
The religious minorities suffering abuses in Iran include Baha’is, Christian converts, Sunni Muslims, Jews, and Zoroastrians. Some have been sentenced to death and executed for committing “enmity against God” in the Islamic Republic, where Shiite Muslims form a majority.
Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious minority, the Baha’i community, has experienced some of the worst repression. Authorities consider the Baha’is to be “heretics” because they believe that all religions have legitimacy, and they are not recognized as a protected religious minority under the Iranian constitution. More than 100 Baha’is were in jail for their beliefs as of February, the report said. They are often denied entrance to universities and frequently have their religious sites and businesses destroyed or closed....