We have prayed for his release....though all seemed lost our prayers have been answered.
In a move which came as a pleasant surprise to many, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCRIF) announced over the weekend that Iran has released pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who had been imprisoned for three years and was reportedly under a sentence of death. Nadarkhani’s crime was “apostasy” since he had been born into a Shi’ite Moslem family but had accepted Jesus and was leading a small house church, which he attempted to register with the authorities. He also questioned the compulsory Islamic education of his children. “USCIRF calls on the government of Iran to comply with its own laws and international standards of human rights and release all other prisoners of conscience,” said Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett, who chairs USCRIF.
In a move which came as a pleasant surprise to many, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCRIF) announced over the weekend that Iran has released pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who had been imprisoned for three years and was reportedly under a sentence of death. Nadarkhani’s crime was “apostasy” since he had been born into a Shi’ite Moslem family but had accepted Jesus and was leading a small house church, which he attempted to register with the authorities. He also questioned the compulsory Islamic education of his children. “USCIRF calls on the government of Iran to comply with its own laws and international standards of human rights and release all other prisoners of conscience,” said Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett, who chairs USCRIF.
