Iranian authorities arrested Toomaj Aryan-Kia who is an Iranian Christian convert. On November 5, a court pronounced the charges against him as collaborating with hostile governments, engaging in propaganda, propagating Christianity, and membership of an anti-regime groups. The court sentenced him to ten years in prison and banned him from joining any group for two years after his release.

The convert had previously been arrested by Iranian authorities in 2022. Agents searched his home, confiscating personal items, including Bibles. He was held in detention for almost a month and then transported to a prison where he spent a further 40 days. His release came only after paying a bail bond equivalent  to $75,000.

Toomaj appealed the sentence, even though the court had denied his request for a retrial of his case. With his sentence, he became the sixth known Christian to received more than a ten-year prison sentence in Iran, this year alone.

Source: Article18