Sawt Falasteen - 'Scapegoating': Iran's Bahais feel brunt of crackdown

Naimi, a member of Iran's Bahai religious minority from Kerman in southeastern Iran, was hauled away to prison, accused of offences he could not have committed and subjected to torture, according to supporters.

When allowed a brief call with his parents, he said: "'If they execute me do not be sad, my soul will be free of the cage of my body'," a close relative based outside Iran familiar with the details of the case told AFP, asking not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.

He is among dozens of Bahais arrested since nationwide protests broke out in January, representatives say, in one of the most ferocious crackdowns against the minority since the early years of the Islamic revolution.

The Bahai faith is a monotheistic religion dating back to the early 19th century.

By far the largest non-Muslim religious minority Iran, the Bahai have suffered decades of persecution and their faith is not recognised by the Islamic republic.

They have repeatedly faced accusations of being Israeli agents, in what the community regards as groundless stigmatisation during times of trouble.

A major faith centre and pilgrimage site is in Haifa in northern Israel, but its establishment dates back to well before the creation of the modern State of Israel.

"This is a the type of escalation against the Bahai that we have not seen for decades," Simin Fahandej, representative of the Bahai International Community (BIC) at the UN, told AFP.

She said that since protests erupted in January, 77 Bahais have been arrested, with the trend continuing throughout the Middle East war.

"The scapegoating is not new as it happens at every moment of crisis in Iran. But the pattern of state broadcast forced confessions through intense torture shows Iran's new tactics in disseminating hate speech to justify further persecution against the Bahais," she added.

Amnesty International said persecution of Bahais has intensified since the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June 2025 "including through a coordinated state campaign of incitement to hostility, violence, discrimination and disinformation falsely accusing Bahais as spies and collaborators for Israel."

- 'I have done nothing wrong' -

While in prison, Naimi, 30, has been subjected to torture including two mock executions, his hands and legs bound, being tied to a wall, deprived of food and also appeared in a televised "forced confession", according to the relative, the BIC and Amnesty International.

"For five days they continued to beat him up. He had a short phone call with his parents where he said 'they are trying to tell me that I have done things which I have not done'," said the relative.

Meanwhile, his cousin Borna, 29, was arrested on March 1 and like Peyvand has endured torture including "at least two mock executions and electric shocks causing severe burns to his feet", according to the BIC.

The BIC and the relative said Peyvand Naimi, who has yet to face trial or be formally charged, has been accused of involvement in the killing of three members of the Basij militia in Kerman on the night of January 8 at the peak of the protests.

"But this cannot be as he was arrested in the afternoon of that day," said the relative.

"His parents visited. They could see signs of torture. He told them 'I have done nothing wrong, I have not committed any crime and I will not confess'," said the relative.

Thirteen men have already been executed on charges linked to the January protests such as the killing of security force members, a spree activists say is aimed at instilling fear against the backdrop of the war with the US and Israel.

Peyvand Naimi is accustomed to battling adversity because of his faith. Discrimination had kept him out of university and teams in swimming, a sport in which he excelled, his relative said.

"The one thing about Peyvand is that he never gives up. He has always found another way. Whatever he did, he put his heart into it."

- 'We are the warrant' -

Based in Canada, Roya Basiri was thrown into a state of crippling uncertainty about the fate of her brother Behzad Basiri, 38, his wife Mandana Sotoudeh, also 38, and Mandana's sister Mahsa Sotoudeh, 25 who are Bahais based in the southern city of Shiraz.

Revolutionary Guards agents on March 29 showed up at Mahsa's family home and when they asked for a warrant, the agents said, "We are the warrant," and continued to search the house, taking all electronic devices.

Mahsa was not home. "They used her mum's phone to call Mahsa and told her to come home immediately. When she arrived they arrested her at the door in front of her parents," Roya Basiri told AFP.

Roya's brother Behzad and his wife Mandana were then detained in similar fashion on April 1, Roya Basiri said.

Behzad has since been freed, though his wife and sister-in-law remain detained.

Three Bahai women, one of whom is pregnant, from the southeastern town of Rafsanjan were on April 25 ordered to prison to serve existing sentences on charges of making "propaganda" against the Islamic republic, according to the BIC.

A Bahai woman, Venus Hosseininejad, arrested in January in Kerman and subjected to a forced televised confession, featured in an social media post shared by Donald Trump of women the US president said faced execution in Iran.

Hosseininejad has now been released on bail and, while still facing charges, is not at risk of execution, according to the BIC.

M.Qasim--SF-PST