Three
of the Baha'í youth
arrested in Shiraz,
19 May 2006.


Iranian officials have arrested 54 Baha'is in the city of Shiraz, the Baha'i International Community has learned.
They are mostly youth and were all engaged in humanitarian service when they were arrested. It is one of the largest number of Baha'is taken at once since the 1980s. The specific charges are not clear, though in the past, Baha'is have been arrested summarily on false charges.

The arrests occurred on Friday, 19 May, while the Baha'is, along with several other volunteers who were not Baha'is, were teaching classes to underprivileged children in a school as part of a UNICEF community service activity conducted by a local non-governmental organization.

At the time of the arrests, they had in their possession a letter of permission from the Islamic Council of Shiraz. They also carried the letter of permission in each of their classes.