Baha’i photographer Payam Faridian’s prison sentence reduced to two years

Hengaw – Thursday, September 3, 2026

The Fifth Branch of the Razavi Khorasan Province Court of Appeals has reduced the prison sentence of Payam Faridian, a Baha’i photographer and ceramic artist residing in Mashhad, to two years.

According to information received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, the Fifth Branch of the Razavi Khorasan Province Court of Appeals sentenced Faridian to two years in prison. He had previously been sentenced to three years in the initial ruling.

Iranian security forces arrested Faridian at his workplace in Mashhad on Thursday, January 22, 2026. He was later temporarily released on bail pending the completion of judicial proceedings.

Branch Two of the Mashhad Revolutionary Court initially sentenced Faridian to three years in prison on the charge of “assembly and collusion with the intent to disrupt national security.” Following his appeal, the Fifth Branch of the Razavi Khorasan Province Court of Appeals reduced the sentence to two years.