USCIRF Condemns Killing of Gonabadi Sufi Activist by Iranian Officials

Washington, DC – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) condemns in the strongest terms the deliberate medical malpractice at Iran’s notorious Evin Prison that caused the death of Behnam Mahjoubi, a 33 year-old Gonabadi Sufi activist. In 2019, Iran’s government killed the community’s spiritual leader, Noor Ali Tabandeh, by similar means and replaced him with a government loyalist.

“Behnam Mahjoubi’s death is an abysmal violation of religious freedom by Iran’s government and a stark reminder of its egregious and ongoing persecution of the country’s Gonabadi Sufi community,” said USCIRF Chair Gayle Manchin. “The United States and its allies must directly confront Iran about this mistreatment in any diplomatic interactions.”

Behnam Mahjoubi was among the more than 300 Gonabadi Sufis arrested in February 2018 protesting the house arrest of the community’s spiritual leader. He was arrested again in April 2018 by 20 plainclothes agents, beaten, denied legal counsel, forced to sign confessions, and placed in solitary confinement. While later released on bail, Mr. Mahjoubi was charged in August 2019 by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court with “assembly and collusion against national security.” He began serving his sentence in June 2020 but was denied access to medication for treatment of a panic disorder. In protest, he endured a 10-day hunger strike. After prison interference in his medical regimen without his consent, Mr. Mahjoubi was transferred to a hospital in September 2020. This left him with hand trembles, seizures, difficulty walking, and paralysis on the left side of his body.

Despite international concern, Iranian officials continued to deny Mr. Mahjoubi proper medical care. In February 2021, he was given pills at Evin Prison that caused him to fall into a coma. He was transferred to a hospital on February 12 and passed away soon thereafter. A prosecutor overseeing the trials of other Gonabadi Sufis arrested in 2018 has threatened them with a similar fate, raising serious concerns for their safety and access to due process.

“Iran is now trying to cover up its intent to murder peaceful religious activists through deliberate medical malpractice. The United States and international community cannot allow this outrageous treatment to stand,” said USCIRF Commissioner Gary Bauer. “The United States should continue to sanction high level Iranian officials who murder religious minorities with impunity and accelerate the resettlement of Iranian religious minorities through the means Congress has provided in the Lautenberg Amendment.”

In its 2020 Annual report, USCIRF recommended Iran for designation as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) for engaging in or tolerating systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, as it has recommended every year since 2002. In August 2020, USCIRF released a factsheet on sanctioned religious freedom violators in Iran. In December 2020, the State Department announced it had redesignated Iran as a CPC.

###

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan federal government entity established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected].

USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel Adopts New Religious Prisoner of Conscience from Tajikistan

Washington, DC –United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Commissioner Nury Turkel today announced his adoption of Shamil Khakimov, who he will advocate for as part of USCIRF’s Religious Prisoners of Conscience Project. Mr. Khakimov is a 70-year-old Jehovah’s Witness from Tajikistan enduring a lengthy prison sentence for his peaceful religious practice.

“The Tajikistani government is treating Shamil Khakimov in an appalling way,” said USCIRF Commissioner Turkel. “Since 2019, this ailing, elderly man has been languishing in a decrepit and overcrowded prison on a bogus seven-and-a-half year prison sentence. This term could very well represent a death sentence for a man wrongly imprisoned for peacefully practicing his religious beliefs as a Jehovah’s Witness.”

Mr. Khakimov has high blood pressure and was still recovering from major surgery at the time of his arrest on February 26, 2019. Tajikistani prisons are notoriously harsh, with torture and inhumane conditions widely reported. While in prison, Mr. Khakimov has been forbidden from reading his Bible. After his scheduled release in 2025 at the age of 74, his sentence will forbid him from participating in religious services for an additional three years.

“Tajikistani authorities are essentially destroying this man’s life because of his faith. Such atrocious violations cannot be tolerated if Tajikistan has any interest in improving its record on religious freedom,” Commissioner Turkel added.

USCIRF recently reported on the Tajikistani government’s widespread misuse of extremism laws, as well as and its treatment of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the Global Persecution of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. In its 2020 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. government designate Tajikistan as a “country of particular concern” for its systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.

USCIRF will be holding a virtual event on religious prisoners of conscience on Thursday, February 25th at 11:00 am ET, and will feature Shamil Khakimov.

###

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan federal government entity established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected] or Danielle Ashbahian at [email protected].