By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
TEHRAN (Worthy News) - A young woman who has been jailed in Iran after abandoning Islam and turning to faith in Christ has been denied requested psychological care despite suffering mental difficulties linked to her treatment in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, Christians say.
Laleh Saati had been living abroad but returned to her native Iran in 2017 to care for her elderly parents, Worthy News learned.
However, in February 2024, Saati was arrested “because she had converted to Christianity while living in Malaysia,” said Christian advocacy group Voice Of the Martyrs Canada (VOMC).
“This Iranian follower of Jesus was sentenced to two years in prison for acting against national security by connecting with 'Zionist' Christian organizations,” VOMC told Worthy News.
“While serving time in the notorious Evin Prison, the young Christian woman was also denied psychological treatment, which she required due to the duress of her imprisonment,” VOMC added.
The severe treatment reportedly included extensive questioning by authorities. “It has recently come to light that she has been experiencing increased interrogation in prison,” VOMC said. Her mother was also interrogated and warned that her daughter “may face a second conviction because the case has been publicized to foreign media,” Christians said.
PRAYER APPEAL
VOMC urged its supporters to “Remember Laleh [Saati] in your prayers as she withstands harsh treatment in prison because of her faith.”
Referring to Bible verse Deuteronomy 31:6, the group wrote it was necessary to pray “that this sister in Christ will be divinely protected, strengthened and comforted --
knowing that God assuredly promises to never leave nor forsake His children”.
Additionally, it asked Christians to “Pray that this believer will also receive the psychological care she needs and that threats of further charges against her would not come to fruition.”
With the imprisonment ongoing, VOMC also expressed concern about her mother.
The group stressed it was crucial to “pray for the protection and courage” of Saati’s mother, “who has likewise suffered mistreatment because of
her daughter's conversion to Christ. Ask that this dear elderly woman would be kept safe
from harm and harassment as well.”
Her case highlighted the government’s attitudes towards those who convert from
Islam to Christianity in Iran, a strict Islamic Republic.