Pearl of Persia

Restoring the Broken. Rebuilding the Family.

Decades of repression, abuse and control under Iran’s regime have left deep emotional wounds and widespread despair across the nation. Generations have lived with fear, trauma, loss and uncertainty, often with little hope for the future and nowhere safe to turn for help.

For many, this suffering is compounded by addiction, domestic abuse, exploitation and family breakdown. Women, men and children carry burdens of shame, isolation and hopelessness, often in silence and without access to trusted support.

Pearl of Persia exists to reach those who are hurting with the love and power of the gospel, bringing hope, dignity and restoration to individuals and families.

Pearl stands alongside those who feel they have lost their voice, offering compassion, truth and the promise of renewal found in Christ. Through personal counseling, practical support, training and now expanded digital resources, Pearl helps people rebuild their lives while equipping the Iranian Church to respond with wisdom and compassion.

The Crisis We Cannot Ignore

Although Iran is experiencing remarkable spiritual hunger, large-scale revival and church growth, millions are trapped in devastating cycles of trauma, addiction and abuse—having suffered in silence for decades with little or no access to meaningful help.

Through Pearl of Persia, we are working to change this, making compassionate support accessible to individuals while equipping the Iranian Church to respond to the depth and scale of the crisis.

To see Iran transformed, we must bring hope and restoration to its hurting people.

A Nation in Deep Brokenness

This is not a marginal issue. It is a national crisis affecting families, women and children across every level of society.

Prostitution, abuse, addiction and depression are interwoven into families and marriages. They have penetrated the fabric of the family and are destroying lives regardless of education or social standing.

Iran’s Welfare Organization AIDS Research Center claims that 50% of women in prostitution are housewives. Thousands of girls between the ages of 5 and 14 are forced into marriage each year, with pregnancies reported as young as 10—creating a growing population of divorced and destitute young girls. In Ahvaz, reports indicate that between one and three girls under 15 are married every day. According to the Head of the Women’s Committee in the Governorate of Ahvaz (Pooneh Pilram): “When families cannot provide for their children, they first get rid of their daughter.”

The Scale of the Crisis

There are no comprehensive, reliable statistics capturing the full extent of trauma, exploitation and family breakdown in Iran. But the studies and reports available reveal the devastating scale of the need.

• Over 1 million women and girls are estimated to be trapped in prostitution, some from as young as 12
• Sighe temporary marriages legalize abuse for girls of any age.
• Child marriage remains a serious concern, affecting 1 in 5 registered marriages with girls as young as five
• Hundreds of babies are born to mothers aged 10–14 each year (1,474 recorded in 2021)
• Around 700,000 children are in forced labor, with a further 100,000 abandoned and vulnerable on the streets
• More than 4.4 million Iranians are affected by drug addiction
• 23 million adults suffer from mental-health problems, especially depression and anxiety disorder, with women more likely to be affected
• 5.2 million Iranians living with depressive disorders, including 3.2 million women
• Suicide rates have risen by 44% in 20 years with 15 suicides per day, mostly 15-35 year olds (attempted suicides around 20 times more)

The seriousness of the crisis has also been acknowledged by Iranian authorities. In 2021 Iran’s Minister of Health announced that 25% of Iranians are clinically depressed. On September 3, 2023, Ahmad Jalili, head of the Iranian Psychiatric Association, stated: “according to conducted research, the rate of depression among citizens living in Tehran is close to 34 percent”.

Additional evidence reveals how difficult it can be to seek help:

• In one study of married women who had experienced sexual violence, 74% said they had never disclosed their experience
• The World Bank estimated that 33.2% of Iranians lived below its upper-middle-income poverty line in 2024, adding financial pressure to families already struggling with fear, instability and limited access to support

These figures come from studies and estimates covering different periods. They do not capture the full human impact of Iran’s more recent crises.

Behind every statistic is a person. Someone carrying deep trauma, pain, fear, grief or shame. Someone who may never have felt safe enough to speak, who has lost hope and has nowhere to turn. Someone who deserves to be heard, treated with dignity and offered a path toward hope and restoration.

Read the devastating reality of prostitution, underage marriages and addiction in Iran

Read about the harsh realities for the working children of Iran

The Deeper Issue: A Crisis of the Family

This is not just about individuals.

Prostitution, addiction, abuse and depression are tearing apart the fabric of the family in Iran.

Many women in prostitution are married. Young girls are forced into early marriage and abandonment. Trauma is passed from one generation to the next.

Without intervention, the cycle continues.

Pearl exists to break that cycle.

How Pearl of Persia Brings Transformation

Pearl of Persia brings a message of hope, specialist counseling and practical support for those seeking freedom from addiction and self-destruction. At its heart, the mission is to restore the family.

Pearl of Persia was created to equip the Church in Iran to respond with both truth and compassion, meeting people at their deepest point of need and walking with them toward freedom.

This includes those encountering Jesus for the first time as a way out of hopelessness, as well as believers who still need support to experience true healing from the trauma of their past.

Pearl provides a safe space for honest conversations about deeply rooted struggles, including identity, past wounds, and family brokenness, always with the goal of healing and restoration.

At the heart of this work is a desire to see lives rebuilt, families restored and hope reclaimed through the love of Jesus.

Through Pearl, individuals:

• Encounter Jesus in a personal, life-changing way
• Receive one-to-one counseling for trauma, addiction and abuse
• Find support in breaking destructive cycles and rebuilding their identity
• Gain practical skills to restore dignity, stability and independence
• Rebuild their lives and begin restoring marriages, families and communities
• Access guided digital resources that offer a private first step when personal counseling is unavailable or difficult to reach

This is not just about rescue. It is about lasting transformation.

Read how a ‘Pearl of Persia’ Social Media post saved a marriage and led a couple to salvation

It is time for the Church to show a better way, to restore Iran’s youth, and redeem the integrity of the family unit in Iran. We share the good news in a way that will speak directly to this sector of society, we offer specialist counseling and support in practical ways.

We believe:

• The most broken can be fully restored
• The Church can be equipped to respond effectively
• Families can be rebuilt
• Iran can be transformed through the power of the gospel

Expanding Our Reach: Pearl’s New Digital Support Platform

For millions of Iranians, professional counseling is unavailable, unaffordable or difficult to access safely. Yet the need for compassionate, culturally sensitive support is enormous.

On November 5, 2026, Pearl of Persia launches a free digital platform to help many more Iranians take a private first step toward understanding and addressing their emotional pain.

Developed with experienced counselors and mental-health professionals, the platform combines short, counselor-led videos, practical exercises, written resources and guided reflection. It also introduces Zoe, an AI-powered chat companion, designed to walk alongside each person with compassion, responding to their questions and helping them explore relevant guidance at their own pace.

The platform is primarily designed for Iranians, with videos available only in Farsi. However, the site also offers a range of written resources in both Farsi and English. Zoe can converse with users in over 100 languages, making personalized support accessible to an even wider audience.

The goal is not to replace human counseling. It is to make foundational support accessible to far more people, including those who may otherwise receive no help at all, while providing pathways to further care when needed.

The Pearl platform is so well presented, and the language is clearly trauma-informed. The wording is so gentle, and the site is easy to navigate. I also love that there is a way to reach out for help if you’re in an immediate crisis. What an excellent resource!

Explore the Platform. Meet Zoe.

Discover Pearl’s new digital resources and experience Zoe, our compassionate chat companion.

Try our Pearl of Persia Platform for yourself!

Be Part of the Restoration

This work is urgent—and it is growing.

Your support helps:

• Provide counseling to those in crisis
• Equip believers to minister effectively
• Reach the most hidden and vulnerable
• Restore families and rebuild lives
• Expand access to compassionate digital resources for people who cannot otherwise reach support

Give today and help bring healing to Iran

A Life Transformed

One woman discovered Pearl through a TV program. What followed changed everything. She gave her life to Jesus, received one-on-one counseling, found healing and freedom from her past. She built a successful business and began sharing her faith with others. Even after imprisonment and losing everything, she continues her journey of healing—with ongoing support from Pearl.

Today, she dreams of helping other women find the same freedom.

How can I tell my story in a few words? I experienced horrific abuse through my childhood. As a result of that, I ended up in relationships with many men (including sighe). I was caught up in a cycle of stealing, lying and more. One day I was searching TV channels and I found Pearl of Persia’s programs. I called and spoke to a counselor. She explained many things to me. I gave my life to Jesus, received 1:1 counselling from the Pearl of Persia counselor and I found my freedom again. With encouragement from my counselor, I learnt about skincare and jewelry making and started my own business. I could not contain the joy of what Jesus had done for me. I started witnessing to those around me. By this point I had grown a successful business and started helping others. The government saw this and arrested me. They jailed me for my evangelism and took my business away. After my release, I fled to Turkey. This was 4 years ago. I am now in Istanbul. Transform Iran has stood by my side through all these years. They have helped me with housing and I am receiving counseling and healing for the trauma of all the years before. I would love to work full time for Pearl of Persia and help others like me, mentoring women in setting up their own businesses.