Iran background

Country overview

Persia, as Iran was known before 1935, was one of the greatest empires of the ancient world, and the country has long maintained a distinct cultural identity within the Islamic world by retaining its own language and adhering to the Shia interpretation of Islam.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader, is the highest power in the land and appoints the head of the judiciary, military leaders, the head of radio and TV, and Friday prayer leaders. He was appointed for life in June 1989, succeeding Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic republic. He served two consecutive terms as president in the 1980s.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected as the country's president on 12 June 2009. During his first term in office, Ahmadinejad took an ultra-conservative, pro-Islamic and anti-Western stance. In 2008, he faced mounting criticism of his handling of the economy, with hardship on the rise as a result of falling oil prices and the UN sanctions imposed in response to Iran's nuclear programme. However, despite facing a strong challenge in the recent presidential elections, official results gave Mr Ahmadinejad 63 per cent of the vote, in an election that saw an unprecedented voter turnout of 85%.

Economically, the country continues to suffer from rising inflation, high food costs, comparatively low wages and increasing unemployment. 

Socially, there is growing discontent, with many Iranians opposed to the enforcement of rules concerning long, dark clothing and head coverings for women, and conservative clothing and hairstyles for men. Drug abuse is a significant problem amongst disaffected youth in particular. 

Situation for Christians

The total number of Christians in Iran numbers only 250,000 out of a population of 72 million. 

Around half of these believers belong to the officially recognised Armenian, Assyrian and Chaldean Churches. The other half, who are mainly Farsi-speaking believers, meet in small house churches, and many are reliant on satellite TV for their spiritual nourishment. Often first-generation Christians, they are desperate for Bibles and spiritual teaching in their own language. 

Believers who are active in churches or the home church movement come under great pressure from the authorities: they may be questioned, arrested and interrogated, or even put in prison, where they may be tortured and beaten. Individual believers also face oppression from society. Many have difficulty in finding and keeping a job, and may be demoted or even fired when it becomes known they are Christian. Christians who start a business of their own have problems getting and keeping clients, making it very hard for them to gain an income.

However, the number of Christians in the house churches is growing fast, with many being reached through satellite TV and the internet. More than any other country in the Middle East, Muslim-background believers from Iran speak about visions and dreams as a reason for converting. 

For further information  on Iran, go to www.bbc.co.uk/topics/iran