Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring awareness to the plight of Iranian American Saeed Abedini, a 34-year-old Christian pastor who was unlawfully arrested by the Islamic Republic of Iran for refusing to renounce his Christian faith. Saeed, along with his wife, Naghmeh, are prominent in the house church movement throughout Iran, credited with establishing around 100 churches in 30 different Iranian cities. After the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2005, the church movement became the subject of authoritarian crackdown, prompting the Abedinis to return to the United States. On September 26, 2014, Saeed Abedini returned to Iran to visit family and continue his humanitarian work to establish an orphanage. During this trip, Saeed was arrested and charged with undermining national security. In early 2013, Saeed was transferred from Tehran to the Rajai Shahr prison in the town of Karaj, an institution known for harsher and often life-threatening conditions. I call on the administration to act swiftly for the immediate return of this American to his family. ____________________”