In December 2025, five Iranian Christians received lengthy prison sentences. The charges against them officially involved “collusion” and “propaganda” — but what the Iranian court was truly punishing was far more ordinary: gathering for worship, praying together, and observing the sacraments of communion and baptism. These are the defining acts of the Christian life, not crimes against any state.

The believers appealed their sentences, exercising the legal recourse available to them under Iranian law. But on June 22nd, the court announced that the original verdicts would stand — and it did so without convening any hearings or granting the accused believers any opportunity to present their cases. The decision was rendered in silence, without the defendants’ voices ever being heard.

For security reasons, one of the five believers’ names was withheld from the initial report in December. The four whose names are known publicly are Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh, Joseph Shahbazian, Lida Shahbazian, and Aida Najaflou.

A pattern of injustice

The charges used against these believers — “collusion against national security” and “propaganda against the state” — are not unique to this case. They are the standard legal instruments deployed by Iranian authorities against Christians who gather outside of state-sanctioned channels. The Iranian government officially permits Christianity, but in practice criminalizes evangelism, home worship, conversion from Islam, and the distribution of Christian materials.

Reporting on this case has been provided by Article18, an organization that monitors and documents the persecution of Christians in Iran, and HRANA (Human Rights Activists News Agency). Further details on the initial convictions are available through their reporting.

The denial of hearings during the appeal process represents a significant procedural injustice — one that denied the believers even the minimal protections the Iranian legal system nominally provides. The court’s silence in the face of their appeals speaks loudly about the nature of the proceedings.