TEHRAN, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- Seven members of the Bahai faith face trial in Iran as alleged Israeli agents.
Hassan Haddad, a spokesman for the Tehran prosecutor, said the legal proceedings were scheduled to begin Tuesday, Press TV reported.
Bahai was founded by a 19th-century Persian who took the name Bahá'u'lláh, Arabic for "follower of God." The faith emphasizes the essential unity of all major religions.
Although it was born in the country that is now Iran, the Islamic Republic does not recognize Bahai as a legitimate religion.
Bahai World News Service called the upcoming trial "yet another failure of legal due process."
While the government says defense lawyers will be present during the proceedings, Abdolfattah Soltani, a key member of the legal team, is himself an inmate in Evin Prison, the news service said.
The defendants have been imprisoned since last year.
