Is it permissible to trim the beard in a country that oppresses the committed, out of fear of imprisonment or exposure to accountability?

If shaving the beard causes certain and unbearable harm, such as death or torture, and this harm cannot be averted except by thinning or shaving it, then it is permissible to thin it. Shaving is not permissible unless there is no other alternative to avert the harm, because necessity is estimated by its extent.