U.S. Special Representative Criticizes the Situation of Religious Minorities in Iran

Brian Hook, the U.S. Special Representative for Iran, stated during a meeting titled "International Roundtable on Religious Freedom" that "every day in Iran, men and women suffer from many untold horrors because of their religious beliefs." Parts of Mr. Hook's speech were published on December 7 on the Persian-language website of the U.S. State Department on social media. The U.S. Special Representative for Iran mentioned that Baha'is, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Sunni Muslims, and Dervishes are specifically "targeted by this regime." Mr. Hook stated that "Sunni Muslims are also subjected to government repression, including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detentions, and torture while in custody. They are regularly denied permits to build places of worship, especially in Tehran." According to the U.S. Special Representative for Iran, this situation reflects the "hypocrisy" of government leaders who consider themselves the vanguard of Islam. The state of religious freedom in Iran has repeatedly faced criticism from NGOs and human rights advocates. The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran has also criticized the restrictions and discrimination against religious minorities and women by the Iranian government. In the annual report of the U.S. State Department, Iran is typically described alongside countries like Saudi Arabia as a violator of religious freedom. The Iranian Foreign Ministry describes these reports as "unsubstantiated, unrealistic, exaggerated, and unconstructive," claiming they are prepared "based on political motives." The Islamic Republic states that the U.S. government "should pay attention to the gross violations of the rights of its own Muslims instead of lecturing other countries." Brian Hook, at the "International Roundtable on Religious Freedom," said that the Iranian government "could learn lessons from the founder of the Persian Empire, Cyrus the Great, who is famous for his religious tolerance. The Iranian regime regularly prevents Iranians from visiting his tomb. One must ask, what does this unstable regime fear?" It seems Mr. Hook's reference is to the opposition and prevention of ceremonies held near the tomb of Cyrus in Iran. In Iran, the seventh of Aban is informally referred to as "Cyrus Day," and a group of citizens usually holds ceremonies on this day. In another part of his speech, Brian Hook criticized the spending of the Iranian government outside its borders, stating, "While billions [of tomans] are spent on foreign adventures, public services are severely declining." Mr. Hook also stated that the U.S. government's "maximum pressure" campaign will continue until the Islamic Republic "changes its destructive policies." The "maximum pressure" campaign is a term used by Washington officials after the U.S. government withdrew from the nuclear agreement and reinstated sanctions against Iran. The Trump administration claims that the Obama-era nuclear agreement did not end Iran's other "destructive" actions and has a time limit. Tehran, on the other hand, accuses the U.S. of violating its multilateral commitments and denies allegations of "destructive activities" or "supporting terrorism." Iranian officials have described the recent actions of the U.S. government as "psychological warfare."