A prison officer in Iran beat an imprisoned Christian convert for requesting medical treatment for a heart condition, according to advocacy group Article 18.
Amir-Ali Minaei, 31, serving three years and seven months for “propaganda activities against the regime through establishing a house church,” was beaten earlier this month by a prison guard identified as Mehdi Salimi, according to a press statement from Article 18.
Evin Prison authorities in Tehran have denied his repeated requests for a referral to a cardiologist for heart problems that began as a result of his initial detention, the group stated.
“After his most recent request earlier this month, Amir-Ali was beaten by a prison officer who struck him directly in the chest, thereby worsening his condition,” Article 18 stated. “Despite the beating, Amir-Ali has still not been referred to a cardiologist, and there are fears his condition may further deteriorate in the next few weeks, as the Persian New Year season begins and regular treatment options become even harder to access.”
Minaei, from Tehran, was arrested in December 2023 and detained for more than two months in Ward 209 of Evin Prison, which is under the control of the Ministry of Intelligence. Released on bail for the equivalent of about $10,000 USD following a series of intensive interrogations, Minaei’s heart condition was diagnosed between his release and his sentencing in March 2024, “and is understood to have been caused directly by the stress he was placed under during his initial detention and the threat of further imprisonment,” Article 18 stated.
Judge Iman Afshari of Iran’s Revolutionary Court also sentenced him to deprivation of social rights, such as membership of any organization, following his imprisonment, the group stated.
Minaei applied for conditional release in January, but Ministry of Intelligence agents blocked the request claiming lack of “cooperation” with them, Article 18 Director Mansour Borji said.
“Detainees are often compelled to accept extrajudicial conditions as a prerequisite for receiving benefits such as temporary furlough, pardon, or early release,” Borji said. “Authorities and interrogators seek to leverage these individuals as informants, or ‘collaborators,’ requiring them to resume their daily lives while covertly gathering intelligence on other Christians and their activities.”
This coercion further infringes on detainees’ rights, and they are subjected to surveillance and undue pressure, he added.
“With the Persian New Year about to start, we are increasingly concerned about the health and wellbeing of Amir-Ali, a young man whose only ‘offense’ was to meet together with his fellow believers,” Borji said. “We call for his immediate and unconditional release, and for the Iranian authorities to stop targeting house churches.”
He called on authorities to recognize house churches as the only places of worship available to Iranian Christians who wish to worship together in their mother tongue, as churches for Iran’s Armenian and Assyrian minorities are forbidden for Persian-speakers.
“We are also outraged by the denial of medical treatment to Amir-Ali, and especially by his recent beating, and call on the Iranian authorities to ensure that the officer responsible, Mehdi Salimi, receives the proper punishment for his crimes,” Borji said.
Iran ranked ninth on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List (WWL) report of the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. The report noted that despite persecution, “the church in Iran is growing steadily.”
Islamic courts handed down six times more prison time to persecuted Christians in 2024 than the previous year, Article 18’s annual report showed. Iranian courts last year sentenced 96 Christians across the country to 263 years in prison for practicing their faith – compared with 22 Christians sentenced to a total of 43 years in 2023, according to the report.
At least 139 Christians were arrested last year on issues related to their faith. Those arrested increasingly found themselves charged under Article 500, amended in 2021 to include longer prison sentences. The Iranian judicial system also handed down nearly $800,000 USD in fines in an attempt break the backs of “dissident” church groups, according to the report.
Religious freedom violations in Iran are actually much greater than is publicly known, Article 18 noted.
Iranian officials interpret any expansion of Christianity within Iran as an “analogous threat,” justifying further financial suppression, according to the report.
“Authorities have even told some Christian detainees that ‘foreign hostile states,’ including ‘Zionist groups,’ are actively supporting Christian organizations in Iran, rationalizing the severe measures taken against church finances as a matter of ‘national security,’” the report stated.
