Christian Mother Who Fled Islamic Extremism in Iran was One of 14 Killed in San Bernardino Terrorist Attack

Leah Marieann Klett : Dec 9, 2015
Gospel Herald

"Benneta was proud to work for the people of San Bernardino County. She loved her job, her community, and her country. Her greatest love, however, was for her husband, her children, and her large extended family." Benneta was also devoted to her Christian faith...

(California)—One of the 14 people killed by suspected terrorists in San Bernardino, California was a devout Christian woman who fled Iran at just 18 years old to escape Islamic extremism and the persecution of Christians that followed the Iranian Revolution. (Photo via Gospel Herald)

Benneta Betbadal, 46, was among those killed on Wednesday at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino by Syed Farook and his wife, both of whom reportedly pledged allegiance to ISIS prior to the massacre.

"It is the ultimate irony that her life would be stolen from her that day by what appears to be the same type of extremism that she fled so many years ago," reads a Go Fund Me page started to help Benneta's grieving husband and children; a daughter, 15, and two sons, 12 and 10.

After fleeing Iran, Benneta first lived in New York City before relocating to California, where she married her husband, Arlen Verdehyou, in 1997. She obtained a degree in chemistry from Cal Poly Pomona and also had a bachelor of science degree in biotechnology, later joining the San Bernardino County Health Department in 2006 as an inspector.

"Benneta was proud to work for the people of San Bernardino County. She loved her job, her community, and her country. Her greatest love, however, was for her husband, her children, and her large extended family," the page continues.

Benneta was also devoted to her Christian faith: In 2009, she posted a Facebook note to Ashur Bet Sargis, an Assyrian pop singer: "My dearest Ashur, I thank God for creating you, for creating such a wonderful loving human, and for giving you such a great talent. May our Lord Jesus be with you all the days of your life."

Benneta's husband told the San Bernardino Sun that his wife loved Christmas because it celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ. In fact, he had last had contact with his wife the morning she was killed when...

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