Attack on Rafsanjani Family Following Faezah Hashemi's Meeting with Baha'i Leader

Following the meeting of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's daughter with one of the leaders of the Baha'is in Iran, a member of the new Assembly of Experts and the Union of 'Independent Islamic Student Associations' severely criticized Ayatollah Rafsanjani and his daughter. Hashem Bat'hai Golpayegani, elected from Tehran in the fifth term of the Assembly of Experts, referred to 'friendly relations with members of the misguided Baha'i sect' as 'treason to Islam and the Revolution' and urged Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, head of the Expediency Discernment Council, to 'advise' his daughter. Faezah Hashemi recently met with Fariba Kamalabadi, a leader of the Baha'i community in Iran, who had been released on leave after eight years in prison. Following the publication of a photo from this meeting showing Ms. Hashemi, who was wearing a hijab, alongside several Baha'i women without hijabs, a wave of positive and negative reactions erupted on social media. Mr. Bat'hai Golpayegani responded to this meeting by stating that 'the Hashemi family is religious' and added: 'A religious and spiritual family that has an anti-Baha'i stance cannot coexist with Baha'ism.' This new member of the Assembly of Experts stated that Faezah Hashemi's actions 'harm her father' and said: 'In our religion, the discussion of children and offspring is not paramount. The priority is our religion. The priority of parents and children is not mentioned in religion. Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani must certainly advise this lady.' Hashem Bat'hai Golpayegani was among the candidates supported by reformists and government supporters in Tehran in the recent Assembly elections. Meanwhile, an organization referred to by the Fars news agency as the 'Independent Islamic Student Associations' of Iranian universities has asked Hashemi Rafsanjani in a letter: 'You are someone who entered the Assembly of Experts with the backing of Ijtihad, but does Baha'ism count as a religion in the family of a religious jurist? Do you not know that Baha'ism is a misguided sect that was formed with the backing of the wicked British? Are you not familiar with this deviation? How do you allow the defense of Baha'i human rights in your family?' The letter published by Fars news agency states: 'It is a pity that a scholar sits and sees his children defending the rights of misguided movements and does not speak up about what greater injustice could be done to dear Islam.' This organization also referred to the head of the Expediency Discernment Council as 'the focal point and center of gravity against the Revolution' and added: 'Your child, who has a history of inciting sedition against the Revolution, is falsely and wrongly using the Hadith of Amir al-Mu'minin for her deviant behavior, while no jurist in Islam, whether Sunni or Shia, recognizes Baha'ism as a religion.' These attacks on Faezah Hashemi come as she has defended her meeting with Fariba Kamalabadi. In her defense, the daughter of the head of the Expediency Discernment Council stated in an interview that she has a 'human rights perspective' towards the Baha'i community in Iran, as 'they too should enjoy their basic citizen rights just like other citizens, which unfortunately they do not have.' Ms. Hashemi added: 'The fact that I am a Muslim and they are Baha'is or which religion is good and which is bad is not the issue. The issue is human rights and the fact that unfortunately certain groups in our society do not enjoy their basic rights, including the Baha'is.' The vast majority of Shia clerics and sources of emulation refer to the Baha'i faith as a 'misguided sect' and condemn its followers severely. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has also issued a fatwa calling for 'avoidance of any interaction with this misguided sect.' The Baha'i community in Iran has been severely repressed since the Islamic Revolution and the rise of the Islamic Republic. During this time, hundreds of Baha'is have been executed or imprisoned on charges such as espionage for Israel or the United States and acts against national security in Iran. Baha'is also do not have the right to education in universities. Seven leaders of the Baha'i community in Iran, including Ms. Kamalabadi, have been imprisoned for years despite protests from several governments and international human rights organizations. Political and religious officials of the Islamic Republic usually refer to the Baha'i faith as a 'deviation in the Shia religion' planned by Britain. One of the reasons that the Baha'i faith and its followers are accused by the Islamic Republic of having ties to Israel is the location of the tomb of Baha'u'llah, the prophet of this faith, in Akko, a city in Israel. This is while Baha'u'llah was exiled to this city by the Ottoman Empire and died there 56 years before the establishment and declaration of independence of the State of Israel.