Free Republic

Iranian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who was originally sentenced to death in his native country for his Christian faith, was acquitted of apostasy charges and released from custody. Nadarkhani, 32, was imprisoned for three years and waiting execution for refusing to renounce his Christian faith. His charges were lowered to evangelizing to Muslims, which carried a three-year sentence. He was released with time served, according to the American Center for Law and Justice, a Washington-based watchdog group that had been campaigning for the pastor's release. "Today our sources in Iran reported that Pastor Youcef was acquitted of apostasy and released from...

Iranian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has been imprisoned in Iran for his faith since 2009, and a New York City deacon has suggested that the persecuted pastor serves as the epitome of a faithful Christian. Nadarkhani is an Iranian Christian pastor who has been sentenced to die in Tehran. Initial reports, including a 2010 brief from the Iranian Supreme court, stated that the sentence was based on the crime of apostasy, renouncing his Islamic faith. Government officials later claimed that the sentence was instead based on alleged violent crimes, specifically rape and extortion; however, no formal charges or evidence of violent...

Iranian Christian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who has become the face of religious persecution throughout the world after being arrested for his beliefs in Oct. 2009, has issued a letter to persecution aid group Present Truth Ministries (PTM). In the letter, Nadarkhani speaks of his current condition, his dedication and sincerity to God, his thoughts about his persecution, and shares his reaction to Florida Pastor Terry Jones's burning of Qurans in protest of his imprisonment. Nadarkhani, 34, was arrested in Oct. 2009 for protesting the mandatory teaching of Islam at his children's schools. His charges were later changed to apostasy and...

Iran Claims Pastor Nadarkhani Won’t Be Executed by Michael Ireland, ASSIST News Service An Iranian official has refuted claims of plans to execute imprisoned pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who has been imprisoned for almost three years on accusations of apostasy, a crime where one disaffiliates themselves from a religion, according to Huffington post www.huffingtonpost.com . The website says the refutation came after human rights investigator Ahmed Shaheed delivered a recent report to the United Nations. The UN report, in addition to citing Iran's "striking pattern of violations of fundamental human rights guaranteed under international law" and the country's "maltreatment of prisoners,...

The "Religion of Peace" strikes again...........

The White House and the U.S. State Department have just released statements calling for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani’s immediate release.

The American Center for Law and Justice, focusing on constitutional and international law, said today it has received information that Iran may have issued an execution order for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who was sentenced to death because he refused to recant his Christian faith. The ACLJ is working to determine whether Pastor Youcef is still alive. "As of today, we cannot confirm that Pastor Youcef is alive," said Jordan Sekulow, Executive Director of the ACLJ. "The news out of Iran is not encouraging. With Iran now dominating international headlines because of its military actions, it's clear Iran may have decided...

Just days after Iran released two Americans accused of spying, an Iranian court has upheld the apostasy conviction and execution sentence of Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani. The 11th branch of Iran’s Gilan Provincial Court has determined that Nadarkhani has Islamic ancestry and therefore must recant his faith in Jesus Christ. Iran’s supreme court had previously ruled that the trial court must determine if Youcef had been a Muslim before converting to Christianity.

When President Obama came into office, we were assured that our relationship with Islamic nations would improve. Islam is really a religion of peace. He said the following in his remarks to the Muslim world, delivered on June 4, 2009 in Egypt. “I have come here to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world; one based upon mutual interest and mutual respect; and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap, and share common principles – principles of justice and progress;...