Tag: Tabriz Revolutionary Court

Christian Converts Sentenced to 24 Years in Prison by Tabriz Revolutionary Court

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News, Religious Minorities
Kia Nourinia, Mehdi Rahimi, Tabriz, Tabriz Revolutionary Court

HRANA News Agency – The Tabriz Revolutionary Court has sentenced Christian converts Mehdi Rahimi and Kia Nourinia to a total of 24 years in prison, over two billion tomans in fines, and 30 years of deprivation of social rights.

Judge Hassan Fath-Nejad of Branch 3 issued the verdict in absentia on April 16, 2025, without summoning the defendants or allowing them to present a defense. The court sentenced both Rahimi, 49, and Nourinia, 56, to 12 years in prison each. As additional punishments, the court imposed fines of one billion tomans on each and banned them from social rights for 15 years.

The court attributed 10 years of each sentence to the charge of “promoting deviant beliefs of Zionist Christianity in opposition to the Islamic Republic of Iran,” and the remaining two years to “smuggling prohibited goods,” referring to Christian religious books. Authorities also ordered them to pay a fine equivalent to ten times the value of the seized materials.

On November 3, 2024, agents from The Ministry of Intelligence raided Rahimi’s home in Tabriz, seizing roughly 5,000 Christian books and pamphlets, along with two computer hard drives. That same day, intelligence agents also searched Nourinia’s residence, confiscating two mobile phones, a tablet, and Christian literature.

Rahimi and Nourinia are both Christian converts residing in Tabriz.

Azerbaijani-Turk Activist Salar Taher Afshar and Rap Singer Milad Jalili Sentenced to a Total of 14 Months in Prison

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Ethnic Minorities, Freedom of Expression, News
Azerbaijani Turk activist, Evin Prison, Milad Jalili, Salar Taher Afshar, Tabriz, Tabriz Revolutionary Court

In a recent legal development, the Revolutionary Court in Tabriz has handed down a combined 14-month prison sentence to Salar Taher Afshar, an Azerbaijani-Turk activist, and Milad Jalili, a rap singer.

As per the verdict issued by Branch 2 of the Tabriz Revolutionary Court, Taher Afshar has been sentenced to six months for “assisting in spreading propaganda against the regime,” while Jalili has received eight months for “propaganda against the regime through performing a political rap music supporting convicted secessionists.” Notably, Jalili has been acquitted of the charge of “acting against national security through inciting people to violence and riots.”

Jalili was taken into custody on November 28, 2023, and Taher Afshar on December 19. They were both released on bond on January 29 and 22, 2024, respectively. However, Taher Afshar was re-arrested in Urmia on February 6 and subsequently transferred to Evin Prison in Tehran after four days.

In 2023, the Department of Statistics and Publications of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) recorded 329 reports, citing the arrest of 324 citizens linked to ethnic and national rights. Notably, 156 of these arrests occurred without the issuance of a judicial warrant.

Azerbaijani-Turk Activist Salar Taher Afshar Detained in Urmia

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Ethnic Minorities, News
Azerbaijani Turk activist, Salar Taher Afshar, Tabriz Revolutionary Court, Urmia

On February 6, 2024, security forces arrested Salar Taher Afshar in Urmia and subsequently transferred him to an undisclosed facility. The news of Afshar’s apprehension was disclosed by his sister.

At present, the specific reasons behind his arrest, his current whereabouts, and the charges levied against him remain undisclosed.

This recent arrest comes after Taher Afshar was previously detained on December 19, 2023. A court hearing addressing the charge of “assisting in spreading propaganda against the regime” was conducted by the Tabriz Revolutionary Court on January 27, 2024.

In 2023, the Department of Statistics and Publications of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) documented 324 cases of citizens being arrested by security forces for their advocacy of ethnic rights.