According to Article 18, a religious freedom website, “Zaman Fadaee, who prefers to be called Saheb, received 80 lashes.” The Islamic Republic of Iran on Sunday imposed a sentence of 80 lashes on Zaman Fadaee, an Iranian Christian, for drinking Communion wine.

The Iranian regime sentenced Saheb to a six-year sentence in Tehran’s infamous Evin Prison for organizing house churches and “promoting ‘Zionist’ Christianity,” Article 18 noted. Ellie Cohanim, the US assistant special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism at the State Department, told The Jerusalem Post: “The Iranian Regime has consistently trampled on the human rights of the people of Iran. The United States stand with the people of Iran in their quest for religious freedom and all other basic human rights.” In October, the regime whipped Mohammad Reza (Youhan) Omidi 80 times for the same alleged crime.

Sheina Vojoudi, an Iranian dissident who fled the republic, told the Post that “What I know from my experience is that it’s all an excuse to make people afraid and prevent the huge wave of converting to Christianity. When I converted to Christianity, I attended the Armenian church in Tehran secretly, where it is forbidden for the Persian speakers. There must be no preaching and no Bible in Persian.”

He added that “It seems as if economic interests are more important for Europe that does extensive business with Iran’s ayatollahs rather than speaking out against their regime’s horrific human rights abuses against religious minorities in Iran.”