Iran's parliament has approved a law that would mandate the death penalty for anybody convicted of apostasy.
Under current Iranian law, apostasy is punishable by death, but the final decision rests with a judge. The new law is being debated in the Majlis of Iran (that nation's parliament) and would mandate the death penalty for apostasy. Glenn Penner is with Voice of the Martyrs-Canada. During an interview with Mission Network News, he said there is overwhelming support for the law. "I don't think there's going to be a great deal of opposition in Iran, at least in the parliament, to such a law," Penner contends. "There's certainly not a strong opposition to any sort of laws that would be hindering the imposition of Sharia law in Iran. So to be honest, I'm not optimistic that this law won't go through." Only days before the vote, two Christian men were charged with apostasy and are still in custody. Iran is listed as a "country of particular concern" by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and is ranked third on Open Doors' "World Watch List" for countries with the worst persecution of Christians.
Under current Iranian law, apostasy is punishable by death, but the final decision rests with a judge. The new law is being debated in the Majlis of Iran (that nation's parliament) and would mandate the death penalty for apostasy. Glenn Penner is with Voice of the Martyrs-Canada. During an interview with Mission Network News, he said there is overwhelming support for the law. "I don't think there's going to be a great deal of opposition in Iran, at least in the parliament, to such a law," Penner contends. "There's certainly not a strong opposition to any sort of laws that would be hindering the imposition of Sharia law in Iran. So to be honest, I'm not optimistic that this law won't go through." Only days before the vote, two Christian men were charged with apostasy and are still in custody.
Iran is listed as a "country of particular concern" by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and is ranked third on Open Doors' "World Watch List" for countries with the worst persecution of Christians.
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