Plea to Save Iranian-Swedish Scholar in Death Row

An international network protecting academic freedom reiterated its call for the immediate release of an Iranian-Swedish scholar who has been imprisoned for seven years and faces execution in Iran.

In an e-mail sent to the prime ministers of Sweden and Belgium on April 26, the executive director of New York-based Scholars at Risk, Robert Quinn, urged the two heads of government to do everything in their power to secure the release of Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali “before it is too late.”

“Today marks seven years since Dr. Djalali was arbitrarily arrested by Iranian authorities. Dr. Djalali has endured over 2,550 days in [Tehran’s] Evin Prison under cruel and inhumane conditions, including torture and continuous threats of imminent execution,” Quinn added.

Djalali was arrested during an academic visit to Iran in 2016 and was sentenced to death on the charges of espionage and treason following what human rights organizations called a “grossly unfair” trial. 

He specializes in disaster relief and is a scholar at Belgium’s Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

Western governments have repeatedly accused the Islamic Republic of taking dual and foreign nationals hostage to use them in prisoner swaps or as a bargaining chip in international negotiations.

In January, Iranian authorities executed a dual national sentenced to death, British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari.