Why? Because he was in the army, and he didn’t tell them he had converted to Christianity. Dhimmis can’t serve in the army. But of course, he had told them, years ago. “Iran: Government Jails Christian Pastor for Three Years,” from Compass Direct, with thanks to LA Hutton:
February 17 (Compass) — Yesterday a Tehran military court sentenced Iranian Christian pastor Hamid Pourmand to jail for three years, ordering his immediate transfer to a group prison cell in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison.
The former army colonel was found guilty of deceiving the Iranian armed forces by not declaring when he acquired officer rank that he was a convert from Islam to Christianity. Under the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, it is illegal for a non-Muslim to serve as a military officer.
During yesterday”s hearing, Pourmand’s lawyer produced several documents in which his client’s military superiors had acknowledged years ago that the colonel was a Christian. He had even been excused by his commander from observing the Muslim month of fasting, an exemption granted only to non-Muslims.
Nevertheless, the court ruled that Pourmand was guilty of giving false testimony and producing falsified documents. Yesterday”s verdict came during the second and final session of his military trial begun in late January.
UPDATE: A commenter was puzzled as to why apostasy doesn’t seem to enter into this story. But LA Hutton just sent this story, which makes clear that Pourmand will also face trial for apostasy:
During last week’s trial, the Christian prisoner was informed that he would be transferred back to Bandar-i Bushehr, where he will face trial on two separate charges of apostasy and proselytizing.
During the hearing, court officials declared that for many years Pourmand had belonged to an “underground” church through which “many Muslims” had deserted Islam and become Christians.
“Either he will be forced to return to Islam,” one Iranian Christian source noted, “or he will face a very big problem now.”…
Since 1990, several ex-Muslims who converted to Christianity have been either assassinated or executed by court order, under the guise of accusations of spying for foreign countries.
Under Iranian law, apostasy is listed along with murder, armed robbery, rape and serious drug trafficking as a capital offense.