Imagine this: an elderly man publicly and peacefully shares his faith in Morocco — a country where freedom of speech should be protected under Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations. Yet Fateh Benaiss, a 57-year-old member of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, now lies in a psychiatric hospital, where he is forcibly confined after arrest by police simply for peacefully sharing his beliefs.

I was a soldier in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and I was very afraid that they would find out I had changed my religion. I have suffered many injustices because of this. I tried to flee Iran by air on December 9, 2022, but the Ministry of Intelligence had banned my exit. My passport was confiscated at the airport, and I was given a paper telling me I had to appear before the Religious Court.

In Iran I was strictly controlled by my family, and they threatened me with house arrest and to hand me over to the police. All of this happened due to threats from the Intelligence Organization of the IRGC, because reports about my conversion and my preaching to people had reached them. These threats initially came in the form of phone calls and Telegram messages, and they still continue.

My name is Nima Esfandiari. I was born on February 28, 2005. I took my oath of allegiance in the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light in 2020 in Iran. I was threatened with arrest by various authorities such as the Basij and the Ministry of Intelligence. They repeatedly targeted me on Telegram and other social media platforms, where I was peacefully inviting people and promoting the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light. They sent me threatening messages many times.

From state TV slander to forced disappearances: Iran's brutal crackdown on peaceful Ahmadi believers exposes a regime terrified of any threat to its authority. No permission needed to use their images in propaganda. No mercy for those who seek only peace and light.