08/03/2026
Why are the religious authorities persecuting Iranian Bahais?
The persecution of Bahá'ís in Iran, including under the rule of the Ayatollahs (starting with Ayatollah Khomeini after the 1979 Islamic Revolution and continuing under Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei), stems from a combination of theological, ideological and political factors deeply embedded in the Islamic Republic's system.
Core Theological Reason
The Bahá'í Faith emerged in 19th-century Persia (modern Iran) and teaches that religious revelation is progressive: God sends messengers periodically to guide humanity (including Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, the Báb, and Bahá'u'lláh). Bahá'ís accept Muhammad as a prophet but view Bahá'u'lláh (the faith's founder) as a subsequent divine messenger.
This directly contradicts a core doctrine in mainstream Islam (especially Twelver Shia Islam, Iran's state religion): the belief in the finality of prophethood — that Muhammad is the "Seal of the Prophets," ( but not the finality of divine messengers). After Mohammed came the Imams. Conservative Shia clerics therefore regard the Bahá'í Faith as heresy and its followers as apostates from Islam. In Islamic jurisprudence (particularly as interpreted by hardline clerics), apostasy can carry severe penalties, including death, and apostates lose legal protections afforded to recognized religious minorities (like Christians, Jews, or Zoroastrians under Iran's constitution).
Ayatollah Khomeini explicitly labeled Bahá'ís as "apostates" and "unclean" (najis), issuing fatwas that excluded them from protections granted to other non-Muslims and effectively permitting their oppression with impunity.
Post-1979 Institutionalization Under the Islamic Republic:
After the 1979 Revolution, the clerical establishment gained full state power and turned longstanding clerical hostility into official policy. Bahá'ís — Iran's largest non-Muslim religious minority (estimated at several hundred thousand) — were denied recognition in the constitution and became the most systematically targeted group.
A key document is the secret 1991 memorandum titled "The Final Solution to Bahá'í Question," signed by Ayatollah Khamenei, which explicitly directs authorities to:
- Block the progress and development of Bahá'ís.
- Prevent their economic and social advancement.
- Aim to destroy the community as a viable entity in Iran (and even export the policy abroad).
This has translated into decades of state-sponsored actions classified by organizations like Human Rights Watch as the crime against humanity of persecution.
Additional Accusations Used to attempt to Justify Persecution:
Iranian authorities frequently try to portray Bahá'ís not just as religious heretics but as a political/security threat:
- Groundless accusations of espionage for Israel (due to the Bahá'í World Centre being in Haifa, Israel — a historical connection predating Israel's founding).
- Claims of ties to Western/Zionist plots to undermine Islam or the regime.
- Labeling Bahá'í activities (study groups, children's classes, community service, education initiatives) as "propaganda against the state" or "acting against national security."
These charges enable arrests, trials in revolutionary courts, and harsh sentences, even though Bahá'í teachings explicitly forbid partisan political involvement.
Forms of Persecution (Ongoing as of 2025–2026):
- Arbitrary arrests, imprisonment, and torture (often on fabricated charges).
- Executions (hundreds in the early post-revolution years; fewer direct executions recently, but severe repression continues).
- Denial of higher education, government jobs, pensions, and many private-sector opportunities.
- Confiscation/destruction of property, businesses, farms, and bulldozing of Bahai cemeteries.
- Home raids, business closures, and denial of dignified burial.
- Intensified targeting and r**e of Bahá'í women and youth in recent years.
Reports from 2025 show escalation after regional tensions (e.g., Israel-Iran hostilities), with hundreds of raids, arrests, arrests, executions, r**es and long prison terms. Iran carried out record executions overall in 2025 (over 2,000 across cases), though Bahá'í-specific executions are rarer now than in the 1980s.
In summary, the persecution is not random but a deliberate, ideologically driven policy rooted in the regime's view of Bahá'ís as existential threats to Shia Islamic orthodoxy and state security. International bodies (UN, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty) consistently document it as systematic religious discrimination with neither basis in the Bahá'ís' actual beliefs nor actions.
