U.S. Commission on Religious Freedom: Severe Violations of Religious Freedoms in Iran Continue

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom condemned the egregious and repeated violations of religious freedom in Iran in a statement. Recently, Iranian officials executed a 20-year-old Jewish man named Arvin Ghahramani, who had killed a Muslim man in self-defense. It is reported that the unfair judicial process and the lack of alternatives to his death penalty were shaped by his Jewish identity. Suzy Gelman, a commissioner of the Commission on Religious Freedom, condemned this action, stating that the execution of Arvin Ghahramani is a blatant violation of religious freedom and reflects the poor status of Jews in the Islamic Republic. She urged the Biden administration to fully implement the law regarding targeted sanctions against senior officials and institutions responsible for human rights violations and religious freedom in Iran. In Iran, cases of religious freedom violations are generally on the rise. Last week, Ahoo Daryai, a student at Azad University in Tehran, was violently arrested after she removed her clothing in protest against mandatory hijab laws. Additionally, Iranian officials continue to deny medical care to Narges Mohammadi, a political activist and Nobel laureate, and recently three Baha'i businesses were shut down, with widespread arrests of Baha'is based on their religious identity continuing. Eric Ueland, the vice president of this commission, stated that the Islamic Republic regime continues to violently arrest individuals who peacefully protest for religious freedom, like Ahoo Daryai, and unjustly accuses them of mental illness. He considered the arrest of Ms. Daryai as another example of the Islamic Republic's complete disregard for freedom of religion and belief, adding that the U.S. government should draw global attention to Daryai's detention and demand her immediate and unconditional release. The Commission on Religious Freedom had previously asked the U.S. government to hold the Islamic Republic accountable for its repeated violations of religious freedom. In April, this commission condemned the widespread crackdown on women and girls for protesting mandatory hijab laws. In its recent annual report, the commission recommended that the U.S. State Department designate the Islamic Republic as a 'country of particular concern' due to its systematic and ongoing violations of religious freedom and urged the U.S. government to support the United Nations' international fact-finding mission regarding the Islamic Republic. This commission, which is an independent and bipartisan entity, was established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on the status of religious freedom abroad and provides recommendations to U.S. officials to prevent religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief.