Saeed Abedini Reaches 1,000 Days of Imprisonment

American pastor Saeed Abedini has been imprisoned in Iran 1,000 days, as of Tuesday (June 23). Abedini was arrested in 2012 while helping to build a secular orphanage in Iran; he was sentenced to eight years in prison and has endured beating and abuse from prison guards and other inmates. 

Abedini’s wife, Naghmeh, and two children remain in the United States, The Christian Post reports.

To mark Abedini’s 1,000th day in prison for his faith, Christian groups displayed 1,000 flowers in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. 

Rev. Patrick Mahoney, of D.C.’s Church on the Hill said, “We are leaving 1,000 flowers at the U.S. Capitol to remind members of Congress that millions of Christians are facing persecution and violence around the world and to demand they work for the immediate release of pastor Saeed and work to end this faith-based genocide."

Naghmeh Abedini told Jay Sekulow of the ACLU, “One thousand days without Saeed has really become a lifetime for us.”

“My children continue to ask when Daddy is coming home. I no longer know what to tell them. While our faith keeps us going and continues to give us strength, we need Saeed to be returned to our family. We miss him terribly. His immediate return is the only thing that can mend our broken hearts.”

Publication date: June 23, 2015