State Department: Iran Remains Country of Particular Concern for Violations of Religious Freedom

The State Department has just released its 2008 Annual International Religious Freedom Report. According to the report, Iran remains a country of “particular concern” for its “particularly egregious violations of religious freedom.” The report lists abuses of religious freedom in Iran in the last year, including significant abuses and discrimination against the Baha’i community, but also against the Christian, Sufi, Sunni and Jewish communities.

The report notes that while the U.S. does not have direct relations with Iran, “it calls on other countries that have bilateral relations with the country to use those ties to press the Government on religious freedom and human rights matters.”

Read the full report here.