Iranians around the world are celebrating the recent events in their country, including Christian refugees in neighboring Armenia. Meanwhile, Operation Blessing is getting ready to provide food, shelter, and other aid to Iranians crossing the border. CBN’s Chuck Holton reports from Armenia.
INTRO:
Iranians around the world are celebrating the recent events in their country, including Christian refugees in neighboring Armenia. Meanwhile, Operation Blessing is getting ready to provide food, shelter, and other aid to Iranians crossing the border. CBN’s Chuck Holton reports from Armenia.
REPORT:
VO1: NEWS OF KHAMENEI’S DEATH SPARKED CELEBRATIONS AMONG IRANIANS LIVING IN ARMENIA’S CAPITAL. FOR MANY, THIS IS THE MOMENT THEY’VE BEEN PRAYING FOR — THE END OF A REGIME THAT DROVE THEM FROM THEIR HOMELAND.
Parham, Iranian Expat “Yesterday, when we heard about the news, that Khamenei dead. At 1 a.m., we went to the street in front of the Iranian embassy and start dancing a bunch of people.”
Roya, Iranian Christian “Dancing, dancing. I called to my friend. Called to my daughter and son in Iran. Oh, happy. So happy. Thanks, God. Thank you. Jesus.”
STAND-UP: Chuck Holton, Yerevan “Iranians are allowed to travel to Armenia visa-free. Many of them come here to do all the things that they couldn’t do in their own country. Drink wine, listen to music, things like that. But many of the Iranians you find here in the streets of Yerevan are actually not here as tourists. They came fleeing the persecution in their own country.”
VO/STAND-UP: Chuck Holton ARMENIA IS ONE OF THE ONLY ESCAPE ROUTES FOR IRANIANS. SO I’M DOWN AT THE IRANIAN BORDER NOW. THAT FENCE BEHIND ME—THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT IS IRAN. THE BORDER CROSSING IS CLOSED FOR ANYBODY GOING INTO IRAN, EXCEPT IRANIAN CITIZENS. AND THEN THERE ARE PEOPLE STREAMING OUT OF IRAN RIGHT NOW. THE PROBLEM THEY’RE HAVING IS THEY COME OUT OF THERE, THEY’RE FLEEING, AND THEY DON’T HAVE ANY REAL PLAN. IT’S ABOUT A SEVEN-HOUR DRIVE FROM HERE TO THE CAPITAL, THE MAJOR CITY WHERE THEY’RE HEADED, BUT THE ONLY OPTION FOR THEM RIGHT NOW IS A TAXI, AND THAT’S EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE.
Leo, Iranian Expatriate. “The Iranians can go in and come out, but people, mostly, they’re coming out.”
AID ORGANIZATIONS ARE BRACING FOR A NEW WAVE OF PEOPLE SEEKING SAFETY HERE.
Samson Mkrtchyan, Operation Blessing “What Operation Blessing does, the fast reaction to the situations. To give them food, to give them medical aid, food packages, hygiene packages. They’re surprised. ‘Our Muslim brothers and sisters, they closed their doors, but the Christians, opened their doors for us.”
WORKING ALONGSIDE OPERATION BLESSING IS THE LOCAL INTERNATIONAL CHURCH IN YEREVAN. AND THEY’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT.
Dr. Jacob Pursley, Missionary “So Operation Announcing Freedom. We’ve been planning for six years to go into Iran and proclaim the gospel in the cities and in the villages. We have now 147,000 Bibles already from Armenia to go into Iran. And our plans are to set up missions bases in cities and then from there distribute the Gospels and declare the who Jesus is to the Iranian people.”
AS THE FUTURE OF IRAN HANGS IN THE BALANCE, CHRISTIANS HERE ARE PREPARING — NOT JUST TO RECEIVE REFUGEES, BUT TO ANSWER WHAT THEY BELIEVE IS A ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME CALL.
Roya “Thank God. Thank you, President Trump. I love you so much. I love you.”
Outro: I’M CHUCK HOLTON, FOR CBN NEWS.
People Interviewed and their Titles
Included in script and on screen
Recording Location
Armenia
Organization featured in this Story
Operation Blessing, https://ob.org/
Reporter/Producer for the story
Chuck Holton
Story Provider/Contact
Stephen Little, stephen.little@cbn.org
Producing Organization
CBN News, https://cbn.com/lp/cbn-news
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