At 6 a.m. on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, ten Bahaii women residing in Baharestan, Isfahan, were arrested and transferred to Dolatabad Prison in Isfahan.
The detainees include Nasrin Khademi Qahfarrokhi, Roya Azadkhosh, Sara Shakib, Boshra Motahar, Mojgan Pourshefi Ardestani, Maryam Khorsandi, Shourangiz Bahamin, Sanaz Rasteh, Firouzeh Rasti-nejad, and Azita Rezvanikhah.
Security forces raided their homes, creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation before transferring them to prison to serve their sentences.
The arrests trace back to Sunday, April 25, 2021, when these individuals, alongside several other Bahaii women in Baharestan, were detained. After 23 days in custody, they were released on bail.
A year later, the Revolutionary Court’s First Branch in Isfahan sentenced them to imprisonment, fines, social deprivation, and travel bans.
Subsequently, the 37th Appeals Court of Isfahan upheld severe penalties for these women: five years of imprisonment, a fine of 50 million tomans, five years of exclusion from social services, and a two-year travel ban.
This series of events underscores the continued targeting of the Bahaii community in Iran, as they endure systematic repression and discrimination, stripped of their basic human rights.