Ahmad Reza Jalali

Ahmadreza Djalali, also spelt Ahmad Reza Jalali, is a Swedish-Iranian academic and researcher who was sentenced to death for allegedly spying in Iran.[1] He is a medical doctor and lecturer at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. He was also a visiting professor at Belgium's Free University of Brussels. He was arrested while visiting Iran in April 2016 and convicted for spying for the Mossad. He had earlier confessed on Iranian State Television for spying on behalf of Israel.[2][3] Amnesty International stated however that the confession was taken under duress.[4] Iran confirmed the death penalty against Ahmadreza Djalali in early February 2018.[5] Djalali's lawyer Zouhaier Chihaoui told Le Soir in Belgium that the legal process in Iran is unjust.[6]

On 9 February 2018, United Nations human rights experts urgently called on Iran to lift the death sentence against Ahmadreza Djalali.[7]

In mid February 2018 Djalali was granted Swedish citizenship.[8] This step aimed at a potentially better stance of the Swedish government in negotiations with the Iranian authorities in the matter. However, a spokesperson for Amnesty International criticized the timing of that act as too little and too late.[9]

See also

References
  1. "Iran confirms upholding death sentence for academic over spying". Reuters. 26 December 2017. Retrieved 26 December 2017.
  2. "Iranian convicted of 'spying for Israel' sentenced to death". Jewish News. 25 December 2017. Retrieved 26 December 2017.
  3. "Iran 'sentences Sweden resident to death' for spying". BBC. 24 October 2017. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  4. "Iran: Prominent academic sentenced to death after grossly unfair trial". Amnesty International. 23 October 2017. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  5. NWS, VRT (4 February 2018). "Advocaat: "Doodstraf van Iraanse VUB-prof Djalali is opnieuw bevestigd"".
  6. Iran: death sentence confirmed
  7. "OHCHR - UN rights experts urge Iran to annul death sentence against Ahmadreza Djalali". www.ohchr.org.
  8. "Sweden grants citizenship to academic facing Iran death sentence - The Local". Thelocal.se. 2018-02-17. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
  9. "Schwedischer Arzt in der Todeszelle im Iran | Europa | DW | 28.02.2018". DW. 2019-02-18. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
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