Vida Mehrannia to Voice of America: I don't want my innocent husband to be exchanged for Hamid Nouri

As the final sessions of the trial of Hamid Nouri, accused of participating in the execution of political prisoners in Gohardasht Prison in the summer of 1988, approach, speculation has increased about the possibility of his exchange with Ahmad Reza Jalali, a dual-national researcher imprisoned in Iran.

VOA correspondent Hamideh Armideh in Stockholm spoke exclusively with Vida Mehrannia, Mr. Jalali's wife, about her personal opinion on the possibility of such an exchange. Mrs. Mehrannia said that although being away from her husband for many years has been very difficult for her and her family, she is not willing to exchange Mr. Jalali, an innocent person, for someone like Hamid Nouri, who is guilty.

However, Vida Mehrannia expressed hope that her husband would soon return home after years of torture and bitterness. Watch the full interview with Voice of America in this video:

Ahmadreza Jalali, born in 1977 in Sarab, is a physician and university professor of Iranian descent and a Swedish citizen. He is a researcher in crisis management and emergencies and was detained by agents of the Ministry of Intelligence in May 2016 while traveling to Iran to attend a scientific conference.

Amnesty International reported that after nine months in prison, including three months in solitary confinement, Ahmad Reza Jalali was sentenced to death on February 2, 2016, in Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court by Judge Abolghasem Salavati, accused of "spying and selling information to Israel" and corruption on earth.

Jalali has repeatedly denied all these charges and stated that he was forced to confess against himself under physical and mental torture. However, contrary to prevailing practice, his death sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court in less than two months. A photo released of him in Evin Prison in May 2018 shows Ahmad Reza looking very thin and suffering. His family’s continued pressure for him to be treated outside of prison finally paid off, and in the winter of 2018, as his condition deteriorated, he was transferred to the hospital and underwent abdominal surgery.

This prisoner, who is under severe psychological pressure, has repeatedly come close to being sentenced to death.

In an interview with the Persian service of the Voice of America on Sunday, April 11, Vida Mehrannia said that her husband, who had undergone surgery in February, had gone to the Evin Prison health center to receive his medication, but the pharmacy staff refused to give him one of his medications and after Mr. Jalali protested this action, they "pushed him away," and this incident "caused a conflict."

In this regard, the Iranian Human Rights Organization also reported, citing Ahmad Reza Jalali's associates, that he was beaten on April 5th after he protested against "the theft of his medicines by pharmacy personnel."

Expressing concern about Ahmad Reza Jalali's condition, and emphasizing the lack of "access to medicine," Ms. Mehrannia told Voice of America that her husband is "deprived of the basic amenities of a prisoner" and that "this is a form of torture inflicted on Ahmad Reza himself and his family."

Source: Voice of America