Iran Moves to Seize Tehran's Oldest Protestant Church, Evicting 20 Families

Iranian authorities are moving to seize St. Peter's Evangelical Church in Tehran, the country's oldest Protestant church, founded in 1876. The state-controlled Execution of Imam Khomeini's Order (EIKO) has ordered approximately 20 Armenian and Assyrian Christian families, along with two Muslim families, to vacate the 10-acre compound in central Tehran.

The seizure is based on a 1998 Revolutionary Court ruling that transferred ownership of the property to EIKO. Church leaders say the Synod of Evangelical Churches of Iran was never properly notified of that ruling and was blocked from filing legal appeals when it came to light in 2008.

Intelligence agents have visited the site to pressure residents into leaving, warning that those who refuse could face arrest. Observers fear the government plans to demolish the entire complex. A historic Presbyterian church in Mashhad was demolished without warning in June 2026.

The World Council of Churches has formally condemned the actions, calling on Iranian authorities to halt the confiscation and stop intimidating Christian communities. Iran has been designated a "Country of Particular Concern" for religious freedom by the U.S. Department of State every year since 1999.

Under Iranian law, Protestant churches are prohibited from conducting services in Persian, limiting worship to ethnic minority languages such as Armenian or Assyrian. Analysts say the targeting of St. Peter's fits a long-standing government strategy to eliminate independent Protestant institutions and restrict public Christian worship.