Iranian Christian Pastor in Armenia Says Iran Revoked His Passport After Anti-Regime Protests in Yerevan

An Iranian citizen living in Armenia says the Iranian government revoked his passport while he was attempting to leave the country through Zvartnots International Airport, following his participation in anti-Iranian government protests in Yerevan earlier this year.

Seyedmasoud Taheri told The Armenian Report in an interview that he discovered his passport had been invalidated on May 8 while trying to board a flight to Barcelona with his wife, Mina Samadi. According to Taheri, Armenian border guards stopped him during passport control and informed him that Iranian authorities had revoked the document.

“I had a flight to Barcelona on Friday at 4:30 PM. During passport control, I found out that my passport had been revoked,” Taheri said.

He said airport authorities detained him for about three hours while they contacted the Iranian embassy in Armenia. According to Taheri, Armenian border police later informed him that they had received confirmation from the embassy that his passport was no longer valid.

“They told me that my passport was no longer valid. The airport border police sent an email inquiry to the embassy, and after three hours of preventing me from boarding the flight, they informed me that they had received a response from the embassy stating that the Iranian government had revoked my passport,” he told The Armenian Report.

Taheri said he requested official documentation explaining what had happened, but claims authorities refused to provide him with any written report or receipt.

“I asked them to provide me with a receipt or an official report confirming what had happened. They refused and said they would not give me any report or document,” he explained to us.

According to Taheri, the passport was later sent to the Iranian embassy.

He also stated that airport officers allegedly refused to speak with his lawyer over the phone, leading his legal team to advise him to file a complaint against Armenian border police in order to obtain official confirmation that the passport had been revoked at Iran’s request.

Taheri said he currently has no other valid identification documents.

“At the moment, I do not have any other identification documents. All of my documents were in that Iranian passport, and I do not have any other passport,” he said.

Taheri claims the passport revocation is linked to his political activism against the Iranian government while living in Armenia. He said he participated in protests outside the Iranian embassy in Yerevan and had also faced pressure from Armenian authorities regarding public demonstrations.

“During this period, the security authorities repeatedly pressured us not to hold demonstrations,” he told The Armenian Report. “At first they told us we could not protest in open public spaces, and now they are even telling us that we are not allowed to gather or hold protests indoors either.”

Taheri also claimed he was arrested during one of the protests held outside the Iranian embassy.

According to him, Iranian officials and individuals connected to the embassy repeatedly threatened activists in Armenia. He alleged they warned that legal cases had been opened against protesters inside Iran and that their citizenship documents and property could be confiscated.

“They also told us that ‘Armenia is our territory,’ that they have influence over the Armenian police, and that they can do whatever they want there as well,” Taheri said.

Taheri said one of his acquaintances recently visited the Iranian embassy and was allegedly told that he would need to stop all political activity and ask for forgiveness in order for his passport situation to be resolved.

“According to my friend, the embassy told him that I must stop my political activities and give a written commitment that I will not engage in any political activity in the future,” he said.

Taheri noted that he has lived in Armenia for about seven years and holds a five-year Armenian residency permit. He said he owns a fish farming business in Armenia, pays taxes legally, and serves as the leader of a Lutheran church in the country.

He also described previous persecution in Iran related to his conversion to Christianity.

“I was a Christian in Iran. Together with my family — my wife, daughter, and son — we were Christians, and we had a house church there,” Taheri said. “In 2019, I was arrested and spent the Nowruz holiday in solitary confinement under the custody of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence.”

He said he later left Iran after being released on bail and has not returned since 2019 because of fears he would be imprisoned again.

Taheri told The Armenian Report that he has not yet contacted international human rights organizations because his lawyer is currently hospitalized with heart problems. He said he plans to pursue legal action once his lawyer recovers.

“At the moment, we have not yet had any contact with human rights authorities or organizations in Armenia,” he said.

Taheri also stated that he has given permission for his name and testimony to be published in full.

“You have my permission to use all of my statements. You are allowed to mention my full name and use anything that I have shared with you here,” he told The Armenian Report in an exclusive interview.

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