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[ 17 Articles ] |
• Bahá / Jalál 171 B.E.
• Jumādá al-ūlá / Jumādá al-ākhirah
A.H. 1435
• April A.D. 2014
• Nissan A.M. 5774 |
In S̲h̲íráz, the Revolutionary Guard
began excavation of some 200 square meters of the Bahá'í cemetery. The
site, which had been in use since the 1920s, had been confiscated by the
government in 1983 and the Revolutionary Guard had taken ownership of
the site some three years earlier with plans to build a cultural and
sports centre. It is the site of the remains of the ten Bahá'í of S̲h̲íráz
who were hanged in 1983 for the crimes of being Zionists and teaching
children's classes. [BWNS993, BWNS994] |
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• Istijlál 11 Jamál 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Khamīs 8 Rajab A.H. 1435
• Thursday 8 May A.D. 2014
• Yom Chamishi 8 Iyar A.M. 5774 |
Despite a worldwide outcry, the
Iranian Revolutionary Guards is continuing to destroy an historic Bahá'í
cemetery in S̲h̲íráz. Between 2005 and 2012 some 42 Bahá'í-owned
cemeteries were desecrated in a similar fashion. [BWNS993, BWNS1016] |
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• 'Idál 12 `Aẓamat 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Arba'ā' 28 Rajab A.H. 1435
• Wednesday 28 May A.D. 2014
• Yom Reviʻi 28 Iyar A.M. 5774 |
In the presidential election in
Egypt, former Egyptian defence minister Abdel Fattah el-Sisi was elected
with 97% of the vote according to government sources. The subsequent
2014 Constitution of the Sisi government, while guaranteeing the
‘inviolable' right of freedom of religion, extended this only to Islam,
Christianity and Judaism – meaning that Bahá'i were still prohibited
from many basic freedoms, such as practicing their religious laws and
constructing places of worship. Though Bahá'í representatives lobbied
during the constitutional drafting processes to expand religious
freedoms to their community, this did not occur.
In December 2014, a public workshop was held by the Ministry of
Religious Endowments to warn of the dangers of the spread of the Bahá'i
faith in Egypt. |
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• Istiqlál 1 Kamál 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Jum'ah 4 Shawwāl A.H. 1435
• Friday 1 August A.D. 2014
• Yom Shishi 5 Av A.M. 5774 |
"The erection of the continental
House of Worship for South America is moving towards its completion in
Chile. The steel-frame superstructure has been almost entirely
installed, the placement of the interior translucent stone panels is
under way, and the landscaping and the construction of auxiliary
facilities are progressing according to schedule. The friends in
Santiago, supported by others from throughout the Americas, have been
diligently striving to prepare the surrounding population for the
emergence of the House of Worship; increasing numbers are participating
in the community-building endeavours, and a stream of visitors are being
welcomed to the Temple site for prayer and discussion on the practical
and spiritual dimensions of the enterprise. Measures are currently being
put in place in that country in anticipation of the many demands that
are sure to arise once the Temple is inaugurated in 2016." [Message from The Universal House of Justice dated 1 August, 2014 to the Bahá'ís of the World] |
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• Istiqlál 8 Kamál 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Jum'ah 11 Shawwāl A.H. 1435
• Friday 8 August A.D. 2014
• Yom Shishi 12 Av A.M. 5774 |
The official ban on the Bahá'í Faith in Indonesia was lifted. [The Jakarta Post August 8, 2014] |
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• Asmá' / `Izzat 171 B.E.
• Dhū al-Qa'dah / Dhū al-Ḥijjah A.H. 1435
• September A.D. 2014
• Elul A.M. 5774 / Tishri A.M. 5775 |
In Yemen, Houthis call for mass
protests after government slashes fuel subsidies. The group advances
south and seizes Yemen's capital, Sana'a overthrowing President
Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's internationally-recognised government. By
February 2015 the group dissolves parliament and announces plans for a
transitional government. |
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• Asmá' / `Izzat 171 B.E.
• Dhū al-Qa'dah / Dhū al-Ḥijjah A.H. 1435
• September A.D. 2014
• Elul A.M. 5774 / Tishri A.M. 5775 |
The exclusion of Shadan S̲h̲írázi, an
exemplary student who placed exceptionally well in the college entrance
exams administered to students throughout Iran. The Iranian government
deployed new tactics in their treatment of Bahá'í students to deny them
access to higher education without raising the concern of the
international community. The new procedure entails identifying Bahá'í
university applicants and then calling them in so they can quietly be
confirmed as ineligible under the government's unjust policies and then
be sent away without any documentation or proof that it was because they
are Bahá'ís that they were prevented from enrolling.
[BWNS1021] |
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• Fidál 1 'Izzat 171 B.E.
• Yawm ath-Thulāthā' 13 Dhū al-Qa'dah
A.H. 1435
• Tuesday 8 September A.D. 2014
• Yom Shlishi 13 Elul A.M. 5774 |
Ayatollah Hamid Masoumi Tehrani
presented an illuminated calligraphic work of the words of Bahá'u'lláh to the Bahá'ís of the world. [BWNS1017 ; One Country 23.2] |
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View Full Size Image [  ] [ BWNS1017 ] |
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An illuminated calligraphic work by Ayatollah Abdol-Hamid Masoumi-Tehrani, containing the words of Baha'u'llah. The quotation reads:
Consort with all religions with amity and concord, that they may inhale from you the sweet fragrance of God. Beware lest amidst men the flame of foolish ignorance overpower you. All things proceed from God and unto Him they return. He is the source of all things and in Him all things are ended. |
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• Jamál 7 'Izzat 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Aḥad 14 Dhū al-Qa'dah
A.H. 1435
• Sunday 14 September A.D. 2014
• Yom Rishon 19 Elul A.M. 5774 |
Some 500 people attend the unveiling of the design of the first local Baha'i House of Worship in Norte del Cauca, Colombia
[BWNS1020]
- Julian Gutierrez Chacon is the architect for the House of Worship.
- The
relationship between the environment of the region and the community is
also expressed in the design of the House of Worship, which was
inspired by the shape of the cocoa pod, a plant that grows abundantly in
Colombia and is integral to the identity of the landscape and the lives
and economy of the people.
- See BWNS for pictures.
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• Istiqlál 7 Mas̲h̲íyyat 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Jum'ah 8 Dhū al-Ḥijjah A.H. 1435
• Friday 3 October A.D. 2014
• Yom Shishi 9 Tishri A.M. 5775 |
Hamed bin Haydara had been held at
an undisclosed location since his arrest by National Security Forces on
the 3rd of December, 2013. During this time he was held in prolonged
solitary confinement, severely tortured and electrocuted and forced to
sign document while blindfolded. In September of 2014 NGOs discovered
where he was detained and tortured and so the National Security was
forced to relocate him to the Criminal Investigation Detention Centre in
the Central Prison in Sana'a. [Defending Bahá'í Rights facebook page] |
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• `Ilm / Qawl 171 B.E.
• Muḥarram / Ṣafar A.H. 1436
• November A.D. 2014
• Cheshvan / Kislev A.M. 5775 |
Fariba Kamalabadi, after having her
fourth request to join her daughter Taraneh for her wedding denied,
writes her a letter from Evin Prison. [Iran Press Watch] |
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• 171 / 172 B.E.
• A.H. 1436 / 1437
• A.D. 2015
• A.M. 5775 / 5776 |
Clashes between pro and anti Huthis
escalate. After President Hadi appeals to Gulf and Arab states to
intervene militarily, Saudi Arabian-led military coalition launches air
strikes against the Huthi armed group positions in Sana'a and Sa'da.
President Hadi flees to Saudi Arabia. Over the next six months the
conflict spreads across Yemen. |
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• Jamál 19 S̲h̲araf 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Aḥad 27 Rabī' al-awwal
A.H. 1436
• Sunday 18 January A.D. 2015
• Yom Rishon 27 Tevet A.M. 5775 |
The first trial hearing of Hamed
bin Haydara was held. Legal and human rights NGOs witnessed tampering
and interference on the part of the prosecution. The prosecutor, Rajeh
Zayed, threatened to detain and execute Bahá'ís. More were arrested. [Defending Bahá'í Rights facebook page] |
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• Fidál 2 Sulṭán 171 B.E.
• Yawm ath-Thulāthā' 29 Rabī' al-awwal
A.H. 1436
• Tuesday 20 January A.D. 2015
• Yom Shlishi 29 Tevet A.M. 5775 |
The website of the worldwide Bahá'í community at www.bahai.org has
been launched in a new version, representing the latest stage in the
development of an official presence on the Web that extends back to
1996. [BWNS1037] |
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• Istijlál 6 Mulk 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Khamīs 22 Rabī' ath-thānī
A.H. 1436
• Thursday 12 February A.D. 2015
• Yom Chamishi 23 Shevat A.M. 5775 |
The official opening of the new
location of the Afnan Library Trust at Sandy, close to Cambridge. The
Afnan Library Trust was established in 1985 to manage the collection
bequeathed by Ḥasan Balyuzi when he passed away in 1980. It consists of
some 10,000 books, as well as a vast quantity of manuscripts, original
letters, maps, documents, periodicals, and unpublished items – some of
them dating back to the nineteenth century. [BWNS1040] |
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• Istiqlál 2 Ayyám-i-Há 171 B.E.
• Yawm al-Jum'ah 8 Jumādá al-ūlá
A.H. 1436
• Friday 27 February A.D. 2015
• Yom Shishi 8 Adar A.M. 5775 |
The premiere of the film To Light a Candle by Iranian-Canadian filmmaker and journalist, Maziar Mahari. The gala
in Los Angeles is part of a campaign called "Education is Not a Crime",
started in 2014, to highlight the plight of Bahá'í' students in Iran and
their recourse to the denial of education, the Bahá'í' Institute of
Higher Education. The film is also screened in some 300 locations around
the world. [BWNS1041, BWNS1025]
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• `Alá' 171 / Bahá 172 B.E.
• Jumādá al-ūlá / Jumādá al-ākhirah
A.H. 1436
• March A.D. 2015
• Adar / Nissan A.M. 5775 |
Southerners took to arms and formed
resistance to further advance their cause for independence by fighting
in order to defend their territory from northern control and a coup of
the legitimate government.
A Saudi-led coalition, backed by the United States, began a campaign
against Houthi forces allied with ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh in
support of Hadi's government. The Houthis were dislodged from most of
the south, but remained in control of Sanaa and much of the north.
In the southern part of the country, the United Arab Emirates, which is
part of the Saudi-led coalition, set up its own security forces, running
virtually a state-within-a-state and fuelling the south's independence
movement. |
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