Iran intensifies crackdown on Baha'is amid protests and war, rights groups say

Dubai,UPDATED: Jul 13, 2026 12:02 IST

Iran has stepped up action against Baha'is this year, with human rights groups saying dozens have been jailed because of their faith amid anti-government protests and the war involving the United States and Israel. The crackdown has included raids on homes, desecration of holy books and religious symbols, and allegations of torture, forced confessions and prolonged detention without known charges.

One of the cases is that of Peyvand Naimi, who has spent more than six months in prison. His family says no formal charges or evidence have been presented against him, even though he has been accused of killing state security agents during nationwide protests. The family says a prosecutor told them, "The Baha'is will not be released."

The Baha'i faith was founded in 19th-century Persia, now Iran, and its followers have long faced persecution there, often more intensely during periods of crisis. Human rights groups say that since January, dozens of Baha'is have been imprisoned because of their faith. They also say detainees have faced mistreatment including electric shocks, mock hangings and forced confessions to crimes punishable by death.

The wider clampdown comes after nationwide protests that began in late December and drew what has been described as the deadliest response by Iranian security forces since the Islamic Republic took power in 1979. Thousands were killed and tens of thousands were reportedly arrested. Iran's Foreign Ministry and its spokesperson at the United Nations did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the treatment of Baha'is.

Baha'is make up less than one per cent of Iran's population, but the government has often used state television and social media to accuse them of being spies and to blame them for the country's economic problems. "Every time there is a crisis - social, economic, or political - shift the blame to the Baha'is," said Simin Fahandej, who represents the international community of Baha'is at the United Nations. "And this (year's) protest and the war have also been no different." Omid Ghaemmaghami, an associate professor of Middle East Studies at the State University of New York at Binghamton, said, "Much of this portrayal stems from theological hostility." He and other experts said scapegoating Baha'is also serves to instil fear and obedience among other Iranians.

According to his family, Naimi was arrested at work on the afternoon of January 8 by agents from Iran's intelligence ministry, and they insist he did not take part in anti-government protests. Amnesty says the alleged killings of three Basij agents during January 8 protests in Kerman took place after he had already been arrested. The government has not made public details of the alleged killings.

On February 1, Iranian state television aired a clip of Naimi admitting to taking part in the protests, but his family says the confession was made under duress. Authorities also accused him of "celebrating" from prison the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the opening salvos of the war, according to the Baha'i Community, which said Naimi had no access to communications at the time and had "no knowledge" of Khamenei's death.

Fahandej said Naimi told his family by telephone that he had been held in solitary confinement in Kerman Central Prison for more than two months. His cousin, Emilia Nazari, said a judge ordered his release on March 7, but he remained in jail. She said family members then went to the prosecutor's office every day for more than a week to demand his release, when they were told it would not happen and he was referred to only by his religion. When his parents visited him in late March, he told them he had faced 10 days of harsh treatment, including being denied food, Nazari said. In mid-May, the family learned he had been moved from solitary confinement to a cell in the general population at the Kerman prison.

The Baha'i faith was founded in the 1860s by the Persian nobleman Baha'u'llah, regarded by followers as a prophet. He taught that all religions represent progressive stages in the revelation of God's will, leading to the unity of all people and faiths. There are more than 5 million Baha'is worldwide, according to Harvard University's The Pluralism Project, with the largest community in India. Baha'is also face persecution in Egypt, Qatar and Yemen, but rights groups and experts say the harshest treatment is in Iran, where Shiite Muslim clerics have regarded the faith as heretical since its earliest days.

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, many Baha'is fled Iran because of arrests, executions, property seizures and restrictions on education and employment. Others stayed or later returned. An estimated 300,000 Baha'is live in Iran, whose population exceeds 90 million. Sheyda Kamran, a professor at the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education, said many feel a sense of purpose in remaining there. Despite living in fear, she said her students often ask how they can help Iranians grieving losses from protests and war. "They have a goal," she said. "That is the only way they can survive."

The crackdown against Baha'is and other Iranians intensified after the United States and Israel launched the war in late February. The Baha'i Community said at least 63 Baha'is were being held in Iranian prisons as of June 11, while adding that the number was likely an undercount because some families fear speaking out. The Human Rights Activists News Agency said most detainees were being held without known charges, while others faced accusations of "propaganda against the regime" and acts deemed "contrary to Islamic law". In recent months, some Iranian television outlets and social media accounts have amplified anti-Baha'i rhetoric, accusing followers of working with Israel against the Islamic Republic. In May, an exhibition in Mazandaran province portrayed Baha'is as enemies of the state, according to IRNA, and Mohammad Baqer Mohammadi Laini, a representative of Iran's supreme leader who attended it, said Baha'is are "spies" and should be banned from owning property, according to the semiofficial Tasnim news agency. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, founder of the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights, said the highly publicised harassment appeared aimed at frightening the public at large. "I think it's part of the general intensification of the repression in Iran," he said.

Another case cited by families is that of Behzad Basiri, who was arrested in April by Revolutionary Guard agents at his home in Shiraz without any charges, they said. His family said Baha'i holy books were torn up during the raid. His wife, Mandana Sotoudeh, was arrested the same day at her parents' house, while her sister, Mahsa Sotoudeh, had been detained three days earlier. Basiri was released on bail on May 6, and his wife and sister-in-law were released on bail on July 1, according to the family. Basiri's sister Roya, who lives in Canada, said some relatives chose to stay in Iran out of love for the country and hope for a better future. "They're paying the heavy price for that choice," she said. Taken together, the cases outlined by families, rights groups and experts point to a broader campaign against Baha'is in Iran during a period of protests, war and tighter repression.

With PTI Inputs

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