Secretary of State John Kerry is highlighting the case of Pastor Saeed Abedini as an example of Christian persecution in the Middle East.

“In Iran, U.S. Iranian citizen Pastor Saeed Abedini remains imprisoned. The Iranian authorities sentenced him to eight years behind bars simply because of his religious beliefs. We will continue to call for his release and we will continue to work for it,” Kerry stated.

The American Center for Law and Justice, who has been working to get Pastor Abedini freed, released a statement saying they were thankful that the Secretary of State was finally paying real attention to the case.

Kerry was speaking about the State Department 2013 Report on International Religious Freedom.

“On several occasions, however, senior U.S. government officials, including the President and the Secretary of State, raised directly with their Iranian counterparts the case of Christian pastor and dual U.S.-Iranian national Saeed Abedini, who is being held on charges related to his religious beliefs, and called for his release,” the report states.  “The Department of State also publicly called for the release of Mr. Abedini and other prisoners held on religious grounds.”

Prayer vigils around the country are planned on September 26^th, the two-year anniversary of Abedini’s unlawful imprisonment.