Spokesman with the Voice of the Martyrs USA Todd Nettleton says the latest information he's heard is
still being confirmed. "There is a
report from an Israeli media outlet saying that the execution has been
postponed. It's unclear when it will happen. The other part of this report that
has new information to me is that it was scheduled to take place today
(February 28), but it was postponed indefinitely."

There are other stories indicating there was actually no execution order
and that Nadarkhani was being held for rape and "other crimes," not
apostasy. (Article 225 of the
Iranian penal code states, "Punishment for an Innate Apostate is
death," and "Punishment for a Parental Apostate is death.") Naturally, the changing details
beg the question, "Is this a campaign of misinformation?"

"There are so many different pieces of information coming
from different directions, that it's hard to know what is real and what is not
real," Nettleton notes. It could discredit
future reports coming out of Iran. Who
benefits from discrediting the stories?
The bigger question, says Nettleton, is: "What
role does the Iranian government play in this? They have a history of not being
transparent with the rest of the world as far as what's going on inside Iran.
So it is interesting to wonder if they are perhaps playing with this
information as a way to try to gauge: 'How is the world going to respond if we
do this?'"

However,
delay could be a response to the international scrutiny, too. "When it comes to some of the
European countries, those countries can have sway on Iranian public policy. The
Iranian government does tend to pay attention to what they're saying. In this
case, many of them are also sounding the chorus that a person should not be
executed for their religious beliefs."

The
American Center for Law and Justice added their voice the chorus of concern. "If
a human being becomes a bargaining chip for the ayatollah, that's not a
situation that will lead to anything positive," says ACLJ's executive director,
Jordan Sekulow.

Nettleton
says the lack of movement could also signal an acknowledgement of the conundrum
Iran's judiciary faces. If the court
releases the pastor, it denies Sharia
law, risking the wrath of Muslims in Iran. If they execute him, they face the displeasure of the international
community, which includes dozens of human rights groups, the White House,
members of Congress, leaders from the European Union, France, Great Britain,
Mexico and Germany.

Trying
to find a way out of the dilemma, the court gave Nadarkhani a chance to recant
and return to Islam, but he refused. His story reveals a distress the government
can't ignore. Nettleton explains, "The
government is responding with lethal force in this particular situation because
the church is growing in a way that the government can't understand and can't
control. They see putting someone to death as saying, 'This will put a stop to
Muslims leaving Islam to follow Christ.'"

The
paradox of persecution, says Nettleton, is met by prayer. "There is an incredible hunger for
the Gospel. There is an incredible openness to hear about Jesus Christ. We need
to pray that there will be ministries and people and workers who will work in
those harvest fields."

Check
our Featured Links Section for more about the work of the Voice of the Martyr with the
persecuted church.

While there is no timeline set for the new trial, early reports indicated there
were problems associated with the initial investigation of Pastor Youcef
Nadarkhani. He was arrested and
imprisoned in October 2009 for protesting a decision by the government
requiring that his son study the Qur'an.

The conviction came in 2010, and the appeals have been
languishing in the courts ever since. His case has drawn international
attention, says Voice of the Martyrs
Canada spokesman, Greg Musselman. The
pressure has been intense and may be doing some good. "The Ayatollah Khomeini
is getting involved with this, which is very unusual. The Iranian government is
looking for some kind of back door out of this situation."

Additionally, human rights watchdog groups have been sending
in petitions on behalf of Nadarkhani since the conviction. The most recent petition, signed by more than
56,000 Americans, came this week from the American Center for Law and Justice. They're asking U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton to advocate Nadarkhani's release. The ACLJ is also asking Secretary Clinton to
work with the United Nations, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, and
other foreign leaders to ensure that this ultimate human rights abuse – the
execution of a man for his faith – is not carried out.

Since the apostasy charge brought so much negative attention, it appears the government tried to add a
more sinister touch to the case to justify the sentence. Musselman explains that this effort may have
backfired. "There have been additional allegations that he's been charged with
rape and other crimes that are punishable by death. But the fact that the
Supreme Court is getting involved indicates that the Iranian government–because of all the international pressure–is trying to find a way out."

In late September, Nadarkhani refused again to recant his
Christian faith at the fourth and final
court hearing to appeal his death sentence for apostasy. His testimony has been a source of
encouragement for the small Church body in Iran. Says Musselman, "We need to be praying that
the church would be strong and that the Holy Spirit would continue to draw
people to Himself."

Although the case seems to have had a positive outcome for
now, Musselman warns that it's not over yet. "There's
still the possibility that he could be executed at any time. It's a very erratic kind of government, so we
need to pray for Nadarkhani and his family, and also for the church in Iran that they
would continue to be strong, that they would not be intimidated."

Pray that international pressure will have great effect for
Nadarkhani and others like him who are willing to remain faithful regardless of the
consequences. May he and his family
take great comfort in knowing that people all around the world are praying for
them and speaking up on his behalf.