Iranian Court Summons 15 Baha'i Women Over 'Propaganda', Other Charges

Fifteen Baha'i women living in Iran's central Isfahan have received summonses to appear before the city's Revolutionary Court on May 1. 

The women will face charges of "propaganda against the Islamic Republic" and "participating in deviant preaching and educational activities contrary to Islamic law."

They have been identified as Mojgan Pourshafi, Nasreen Khademi, Azita Rezvanikhah, Shole Ashuri, Mojdeh Bahamin, Bushra Motahar, Sara Shakib, Samira Shakib, Roya Azadkhosh, Noushin Hemmat, Shorangzis Bahamin, Sanaz Rasteh, Maryam Khorsandi, Firouzeh Rastinejad, and Farkhundeh Rezvan.

According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), 11 of these women were previously arrested in 2021 and later released on bail. 

The government has intensified its crackdown on members of the Baha'i faith, imprisoning dozens of them on spurious charges over the past year, denying them access to higher education and livelihoods, and confiscating or destroying their personal properties.