Name: Fariba Dalir
Country/Area of Origin: Tehran, Iran
Age: 51
Background: Fariba Dalir is an Iranian Christian convert who was greatly involved in the Evangelical Church
Reason for Arrest:
Iranian authorities in Tehran originally arrested Fariba Dalir and five other Christian converts in July 2021; the other detained individuals included Dalir’s then-fiancé and now-husband Soroush, and a 17-year-old girl. Dalir and Soroush were separated and each spent approximately 50 days in solitary confinement, after which Dalir was transported to Qarchak Women’s Prison and Soroush to Greater Tehran Penitentiary; they spent two months in their respective detention centers before being released on bail, after which they married just prior to their sentencing.
Months later in December 2021, Dalir was convicted of “acting against national security by establishing and leading an Evangelical Christian church” and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment. Four of the detained Christians, including Soroush, were sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment each for their membership in Dalir’s church; the 17-year-old girl was not formally charged and was released, though only after she spent over a week in solitary confinement and under heavy interrogation. With the exception of the minor girl, the five Christian converts were given the option to pay a fine of 5 million tomans each in exchange for reduced imprisonment sentences; this was based on the fact that they had already served five months of pre-trial detention.
Latest Updates:
- 17 April 2022: Fariba Dalir presented herself to Tehran’s Evin Prison to begin serving her two-year imprisonment term on Easter Sunday 2022.
Source: Article18