MISSION NETWORK NEWS: Iran ― As of January, the U.S. State Department declared eight countries to be seriously violating religious freedoms. According to USA Today, the list includes Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, China, Eritrea, Uzbekistan, Myanmar and Sudan.
The list looks similar to the Open Doors World Watch List for 2009, which lists countries where Christianity is most threatened.
This list also includes North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iran in its top three for Christian persecutors.
The situation for Iranians is growing particularly disconcerting. The country has strict laws about the fate of those who convert from Islam. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran "has said that he will eliminate Christianity from Iran," says Todd Nettleton of Voice of the Martyrs. "That's a promise that he has made, so he's doing everything in his power to act against the church."
Threats to religious freedom include a provisional law passed last year to make a mandatory death penalty law for any male who converts from Islam. Females found guilty of apostasy can look forward to a life sentence in prison.
This is the current fate of two women who were arrested in March for being "anti government activists;" but the highest criminal behavior these women have been engaged in is following after Jesus Christ. They are now being held in a prison known for its poor treatment of women, and they are both very ill. >>> MNN | Monday, April 13, 2009
