Baha’i adherent Barsa Maleki sentenced to prison, fine and social restrictions in Mashhad

Hengaw – Wednesday, June 3, 2026

Barsa Maleki, a Baha’i resident of Mashhad, has been sentenced by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Mashhad to a prison term, a substantial financial penalty and a lengthy deprivation of social rights.

According to information obtained by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Maleki was recently sentenced to two years and one day in prison, an 800 million rial (80 million toman) fine payable to the state treasury, and six years of deprivation of social rights on charges of “deviant educational or propagandistic activities contrary to or disruptive of the sacred law of Islam.”

Maleki was previously arrested on Monday, Jan. 22, 2026, along with 11 other Baha’i adherents during a raid by security forces on a birthday gathering in Mashhad.

After undergoing interrogation and spending a period in detention at Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, he was temporarily released on bail on Feb. 15, 2026, pending the conclusion of judicial proceedings.