Baha’is in Yemen may face deportation to Iran
Washington, 27 August (IranVNC)—Three Baha’i businessmen of Iranian origin who are being detained in Yemen face imminent deportation to Iran, a Yemeni security official said today.
By: IranVNC
Published: Wednesday, August 27, 2008
19:15GMT—3:15PM/EST
BAHA’I – YEMEN – IRAN – DEPORTATION
Washington, 27 August (IranVNC)—Three Baha’i businessmen of Iranian origin who are being detained in Yemen face imminent deportation to Iran, a Yemeni security official said today.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official told the Associated Press that the men could be sent to the Islamic Republic “as soon as possible”, but did not provide any details.
The three men of Iranian origin, Mr. Zia’u’llah Pourahmari, Mr. Keyvan Qadari and Mr. Behrooz Rohani, were arrested on 20 June when security officers raided Baha’i homes in Yemen’s capital, Sana’, the Baha’i World News Service [BWNS] reports.
A fourth imprisoned Baha’i of Iraqi origin, Mr. Sayfi Ibrahim Sayfi, was also arrested during the raids and faces a possible deportation to Iraq.
The men were arrested “on the suspicion of ‘proselytizing’,” BNWS reports.
In a telephone interview with IranVNC today, Martha Rohani-Absher, the daughter of Behrooz Rohani, voiced concern over her father’s possible deportation to Iran – a country she said he only visited once when he was young.
“I’m concerned that they’re going to be deported… to Iran, where there is a strong chance that they might be persecuted,” she said, speaking from Washington, DC.
Rohani retains Iranian citizenship, but was born in Pakistan and has lived most of his life in that country and in Yemen, where he is currently the vice president of a large company in the capital city of Sana’.
The New York-based Baha’i International Community today also said it was “gravely concerned” about the fate of the three men should they be deported to the Islamic Republic, and urged Yemen to call off the deportation.
“While calling for their immediate release, our primary concern today is to ask that the Yemeni government resist any impulse to deport these three Baha’is to Iran – or any other country,” principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations, Bani Dugal, was quoted by BWNS as saying.
The Washington-based think tank, Freedom House, today joined the Baha’i community in calling for the release of the detained individuals.
“Freedom House appeals to Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh to rescind the deportation orders and release these individuals,” said Freedom House Executive Director Jennifer Windsor in a statement.
For her part, Absher-Rohani said that her father’s arrest and now the threat of deportation came “completely by surprise.”
“Our experience [in Yemen] has never been negative at all,” said Rohani-Absher, who grew up in Yemen.
She continued: “We haven’t experienced any form of discrimination because of our faith… We don’t really understand what’s changed or what’s triggering any of this. It’s still unbelievable.”
Approximately 250 registered Baha’is currently live in Yemen, according to the BWNS.
Sources: IranVNC Washington correspondent, Baha’i World News Service, Associated Press
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