Belgium – Nieuwsblad, Sept. 17, 2025
The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Flemish Parliament is inviting the Iranian ambassador to obtain information about the fate of Ahmadreza Djalali, the Iranian-Swedish professor who has been detained in Iran since 2016.
“After three months without any news, the concern about the condition of Prof. Dr. Ahmadreza Djalali is greater than ever. The members of parliament therefore want to obtain more information from the Iranian ambassador,” said parliamentary speaker Freya Van den Bossche (Vooruit) and committee chair Bogdan Vanden Berghe (Groen).
Professor Djalali, affiliated with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and of Iranian-Swedish descent, specializes in disaster medicine and was arrested in April 2016 during a work visit to Iran. The following year, he was sentenced to death in Iran on charges of espionage and complicity in the deaths of two Iranian nuclear experts. Since then, the professor has been imprisoned.
After the Israeli bombings of Evin Prison, where Djalali had been held, he was transferred along with other prisoners to the ‘Greater Tehran Penitentiary’. From there, he was taken away separately. Since June 23, 2025, all traces have disappeared: there has been no sign of life, and his health condition is also unknown.
