Last summer, Abedini journeyed to Iran to help open an orphanage with the state’s backing, according to Nagmeh. He was pulled off a bus and placed under house arrest, then moved to Evin prison in September. It is the same prison where another pastor, Youcef Nadarkhani, an Iranian Christian pastor, was held for three years before being freed amid an international media outcry.
The specific allegations against Abedini have not been made public, but supporters say it is almost certainly related to his conversion from Islam to Christianity back in 2000 and his subsequent efforts to spread the gospel. Even Abedini does not know the charges against him, according to a letter he recently was able to sneak out of the prison, which is known for holding intellectuals and political prisoners