'The battle is not over' – former Muslim who fled Iran and became a pastor fights deportation from Israel

Iranian-American pastor Ramin Parsa has been living in Jerusalem for three years with his Israeli wife, Yasmin, and their one-year-old son. During the war, he has become a regular commentator on Israeli news, but the Ministry of Interior denied his application for citizenship because he was born in an “enemy country.” The family is now pursuing a final legal appeal in an effort to remain together in the Jewish state.

Parsa arrived in Israel on March 8, 2023, and experienced the horrors of the Oct. 7 attack alongside the rest of the country. During the war, he stepped up to help displaced Israelis, providing nearly 40,000 meals to 1,500 people. He has also used his platform to consistently speak in defense of Israel.

Yet now the Israeli Interior Ministry is insisting he must leave the country, threatening deportation and separation from his wife and young family. The couple is now pursuing one final appeal, asking for the prayers and support of Christians around the world.

Escape from Iran 

Born into a Muslim family seven years after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Parsa describes his early life in Iran as “hell” under the regime. As a teenager, he was arrested, detained, and tortured on fabricated charges. 

Parsa has witnessed public executions, including people hanged from cranes, and endured indoctrination that portrayed Jews and Israelis as enemies.

During an interview with ALL ISRAEL NEWS, he said, “They executed tens of thousands of people… Millions fled. Almost eight million people have fled Iran since the beginning of the revolution.”

“In our textbooks, we had caricatures of Israeli soldiers killing Palestinian babies. It was not real, but they wanted to sow the seed of hatred in our hearts toward the Jews and Israel.”

His arrest with friends for a minor offense exposed him to the regime’s brutality and sparked deep questions about the faith he had been taught. Studying the Quran and Hadith further eroded his belief. “I saw so many evil things… talking about killing the Jews, killing the infidels, beheading them,” he said. “I could not accept or believe that this ideology came from the God who made the stars, the moon, and the sun.”

At age 19, Parsa encountered the Christian Gospel through satellite television, and in a transformative moment, invited God into his life. 

“The moment I said that – heat went through my hand and through all of my body,” he recalled. “I started shaking and crying. I felt a love I had never felt before… as if a 500-pound weight had been lifted off my shoulders.” 

Parsa said he experienced profound healing, including the supernatural ability to forgive those who had tortured him.

His conversion made life in Iran untenable. After receiving death threats, he fled to Turkey in 2006 and then to the United States in 2008. There, he attended Bible college, became a pastor in California, and taught about loving one’s enemies and God’s purposes for Israel.

A New Life and an Uncertain Future

Parsa’s deep appreciation for the biblical connection between Persia and the Jewish people – particularly the role of Persian kings in helping the Jews – resonated personally when he met his wife, Yasmin. 

The couple married in 2020 and moved to Israel in 2023. They applied for his citizenship the following year.

Because of his Iranian birthplace, the application was referred to a humanitarian committee for review. After a year and a half, the request was rejected on the grounds that he was born in an enemy country. 

A court appeal initially succeeded. The judge ruled the decision disproportionate and ordered the Ministry of Interior to reconsider, taking into account the well-being of his Israeli wife and child.

However, on July 13, the ministry issued a final rejection that mirrored the original decision. The family has been given until Aug. 27 to file one last court appeal. If unsuccessful, Parsa will face immediate deportation from Israel

“If Ramin is deported, our family will be forced to make an impossible choice,” Yasmin said in their fundraiser, which aims to raise the money needed to hire a qualified lawyer. “Our son would either grow up separated from his father or be forced to leave the only home he has ever known.”

The irony is not lost on Parsa. While the family fights for unity in Israel, his brother remains imprisoned in Iran for participating in protests, where the regime has killed some 40,000 people. 

“It seems like the curse of the Islamic regime is following me here,” Parsa said with frustration. “Everyone talks about how Iranians are different, but I’m here fighting because I was born in that country. It’s not my fault.”