This Argovia woman spoke unexpectedly with Donald Trump in the Oval Office

This Argovia woman spoke with Trump in "Oval Office"

Who can claim to have met the most powerful man in the world in his office? The human rights activist Dabrina Tamraz of Wettingen can do it and spoke with the US president about the persecution of Christians in Iran.

For the Aargauerin Dabrina Tamraz everything arrived unexpectedly. The 33-year-old human rights activist Dabrina Tamraz was invited to the second ministerial conference on religious freedom in Washington in mid-July. Tamraz lives in Wettingen but comes from Iran. He is committed to the Christian minority to which he belongs and who is oppressed in the Islamic Republic.

To be honest, Tamraz should have taken part in a round table in Washington. But the ministerial conference took place in the White House. Then Tamraz suddenly found himself in the oval office, the office of the president of the United States.

He sat at his desk, surrounded by other activists who also wanted to present their concerns. Two hours earlier, Tamraz didn't know. "It was kept secret," he told Tele M1.

He gathered his courage and turned to Donald Trump himself: he said his family was oppressed in Iran. His parents are evangelical pastors who have been sentenced to long prison terms: his father should be in prison for ten years, his mother for five and his brother for four. They are accused of converting Muslims to Christianity, which is considered a threat to national security in Muslim theocracy.

All family members would appeal, Tamraz told the US president, and await their second trial.

Tamraz was also persecuted in Iran before being able to flee abroad. She has been living in Switzerland since 2010 and was hired in 2017 as a pastor in the "Chrüzpunkt" free evangelical community in Wettingen. She married and adopted her husband's surname, Swan. From Aargau he is now fighting for the liberation of his family and against religious persecution in Iran.

You can find the whole story of Dabrina Tamraz here.

Trump listened carefully

Due to the brief announcement of the meeting with President Dabrina Tamraz, she did not have much time to prepare for the conversation. "I had to watch what I'm saying because my family is still imprisoned in Iran," Tamraz told TeleM1. He asked the president of the United States to mention his family's situation during the negotiations with Iran. Donald Trump seemed to be interested in the subject: he listened carefully and promised to take this information into account.

Dabrina Tamraz is satisfied with the conversation. "The president gave us time to present our concerns" This, although Donald Trump was apparently under time pressure: "The secret services kept coming back saying it was time to leave."

Vice President Mike Pence also mentioned Dabrina Tamraz and the persecution of Christians in Iran in his conference speech. Your courage was worth it. The next goal is to save his parents and brother from prison. (Tele M1 / ​​iodine)