Iranian Christian Saheb Fadaei, “Prisoner of the Month” in March 2019 (a campaign by the German section of ISHR), has surprisingly become a free man again since February 8^th. A deacon in the “Church of Iran” house church network in the northern Iranian city of Rasht, he was initially sentenced to ten years in prison in June 2017. In May 2020, his sentence was reduced to six years. The trained painter and decorator was charged with “endangering national security”, “propagating house churches” and “promoting Zionist Christianity”. On July 24^th, 2018, he was arrested and imprisoned in the notorious Evin Prison (Tehran). On November 15^th, 2020, the cruel punishment of 80 lashes for consuming wine at communion was carried out on him. He now gained his freedom unconditionally within the framework of a general amnesty on the occasion of this year’s anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Thomas Rachel, member of the German Bundestag and federal chairman of the Protestant Working Group of the CDU/CSU (Parliamentary Group), had previously taken over the political sponsorship in the course of the German ISHR section’s sponsorship project.

Award for persecuted Christian Iranian woman

For her extraordinary commitment, the Stephanus Foundation for Persecuted Christians plans to honor the Christian civil rights activist Fatemeh Mary Mohammadi from Iran with this years Stephanus Award at an evening ceremony on April 22 in the context of the German ISHR section’s Annual Meeting. The 24-year-old is considered the “most courageous Christian” in her homeland. After the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 by an Iranian anti-aircraft missile, which those responsible denied for three days, she demonstrated like thousands of others against the Mullah dictatorship. Security forces brutally intervened in Tehran’s Azadi Square, arresting Mary, abusing and sexually humiliating her. She was held in the most notorious dungeons of Tehran’s terror regime.

At the age of 19, the convert was first arrested at a house church meeting and imprisoned in the notorious Evin Prison from November 2017 to May 2018. On February 27, 2020, she was released on bail – but she was not yet out of danger. There was a threat of a long prison sentence for “disturbing public order”. ISHR’s German section continued to campaign for her, including through its sponsorship project. On February 21^st, 2022, she managed to leave the country for the USA.