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American pastor jailed in ‘brutal’ Iran prison

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Iran pastor

An Iranian-born American pastor who holds dual citizenship is sitting behind  bars in Iran’s Evin prison after being arrested by the Iranian Revolutionary  Guard.

Pastor Saeed Abedini was arrested shortly after arriving in Iran in September  to visit his parents. Reports of his arrest didn’t  become known until this past week.

Abedini’s captors have refused to disclose the charges, but the American  Center for Law and Justice says that the prison is “especially brutal” and that  he’s in jail because he formerly ran a network of house churches while he still  lived in Iran.

Press  reports indicate that he was going back to Iran to continue his work  building an orphanage.

The Iranian government doesn’t recognize dual citizenship and has said they  have no obligation to honor any diplomatic inquiries from the U. S.  government.

American Center for Law and Justice Executive Director Jordan Sekulow says  the arrest is typical of Iran’s regime.

“Iran has commonly employed intimidation tactics to stop the spread of  Christianity and the growth of the underground house church,” Sekulow said.

Sekulow adds that the pastor’s status makes him a target: “Pastor Saeed is a  dual citizen of both Iran and the United States, but unfortunately, Iran does  not recognize Pastor Saeed’s U.S. citizenship. The government does know,  however, that in the past, thousands of Iranians have looked to Pastor Saeed as  a leader of those who convert from Islam to Christianity.”

He adds that the Iranian government is hoping to make an example of the  pastor: “By throwing him in prison under the threat of a long prison sentence,  and possibly death, Iran knows that it can intimidate those who followed Pastor  Saeed’s leadership.”

After picking up Abedini, the government is turning their sights on his  former congregations.

“Since detaining Pastor Saeed, the government has sought out congregants of  the underground house church network he used to lead,” Sekulow claims. “Many of  these congregants have been interrogated and threatened. In essence, through  intimidation, Iran hopes to strangle the growing underground house  churches.”

Sekulow adds that it’s possible that Iran’s regime could use the pastor as  leverage for a political deal.

“While we hope that Pastor Saeed will not become a political bargaining chip  for Iran, we recognize that Iran has in the past used American prisoners as  such,” Sekulow said. “Iran also knows, however, that it is currently on very  thin ice diplomatically with many of its trade partners, and exposing its  flagrant violations of human rights to the world could crack the ice.”

Sekulow adds that he’s hopeful that Pastor Saeed doesn’t become an extension  of the situation with Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, the Iranian pastor held for over  1,000 days. He adds that the episode does speak volumes about the true nature of  Iran’s government.

“Like Pastor Youcef, Pastor Saeed’s arrest, detention and now charges show  the true character of Iran to be a country that is willing to violate the  fundamental rights of man,” Sekulow said. “The world needs to awaken to this  abuse and cry out for justice.”

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2012/12/american-pastor-jailed-in-brutal-iran-prison/#JBf8Wu0rEKpmGqLZ.99

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