USCIRF Urges Secretary of State To Press Iran On Religious Freedom

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom on Tuesday wrote Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (full text of letter) urging her to press Iran on its human rights and religious freedom record as the U.S. pursues talks over Iran's nuclear program. Iran has been designated a "country of particular concern" under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) since 1999. (See prior posting.) USCIRF letter recommends that the U.S. impose sanctions on Iran under the IRFA by barring entry entry into the United States and freezing the assets of Iranian government officials who have engaged in particularly severe religious freedom violations.