Nobel Laureates Protest Iranian Researcher’s Detention, Death Sentence

Disaster medicine researcher Ahmadreza Djalali was convicted of spying for foreign governments.

Written byShawna Williams

| 2 min read

Listen with Speechify

0:00

2:00

Iranian flag with gavel ISTOCK, FREDEX8Update (December 13): Iran's Supreme Court has upheld Djalali's death sentence, Nature reports. According to the publication, his "next step to avoid execution would be for Djalali to ask the head of the judiciary for a review of the sentence."

Seventy-five past Nobel winners have signed a letter to the Ambassador to the Mission of Iran to the United Nations calling for the release of Ahmadreza Djalali, Nature reports. Djalali carried out disaster medicine research in Sweden and Italy before he was arrested in Tehran in April 2016 and sentenced to death for espionage. Prosecutors linked the Iranian-born scientist to the deaths of several nuclear scientists in the country, according to Nature.

“[A] document based on a handwritten text by Dr. Djalali has now raised the suspicion that it was his refusal to work for the Iranian Intelligence Services, which led to this unfair, flawed trial,” the letter states. Citing several similar petitions, it urges Iranian authorities “to let Ahmadreza come back home to his ...

Interested in reading more?

The Scientist ARCHIVES

Become a Member of

Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!

Join for free today

Already a member?

Add The Scientist as a preferred Google source to see more of our trusted coverage.

Meet the Author

Shawna Williams
Go to The Scientist's LinkedIn Page
Shawna was an editor at The Scientist from 2017 through 2022. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Colorado College and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Previously, she worked as a freelance editor and writer, and in the communications offices of several academic research institutions. As news director, Shawna assigned and edited news, opinion, and in-depth feature articles for the website on all aspects of the life sciences. She is based in central Washington State, and is a member of the Northwest Science Writers Association and the National Association of Science Writers.
View Full Profile