Dr. Arash Alaei (left) is serving a six year prison term in Evin Prison in Tehran. Dr. Kamiar Alaei (right) was released in the fall of 2010.

Dr. Arash Alaei and his brother Dr. Kamiar Alaei are HIV/AIDS doctors who were arrested in Iran in 2008 while researching. In January 2009 they were convicted of “communicating with an enemy government” for attending conferences and working with international health organizations to find solutions to HIV/AIDS. Dr. Kamiar Alaei was released in the fall of 2010 after serving 870 days in prison. Dr. Arash Alaei was sentenced to six years in prison and is currently being held in Evin Prison in Tehran.

Physicians for Human Rights has organized an online petition to be sent to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and other Iranian officials urging for the release of Dr. Arash Alaei. The petition can be signed here. The text of the petition letter is below:

Message

Iran, Free Doctor Arash Alaei

To: [Decision Maker],

We, the undersigned HIV/AIDS experts, medical leaders, scientists and concerned citizens are writing to thank Iranian officials for the early release from prison of internationally renowned HIV/AIDS physician Dr. Kamiar Alaei, in late 2010 after two and a half years of imprisonment. We are very pleased that he can now continue his vital medical and public health work.

We now write to respectfully ask your government also to release Dr. Arash Alaei Dr. Kamiar Alaei’s brother from Evin prison in Tehran during the upcoming Islamic holy days. It is our understanding that, as of 27 June 2011, Dr. Arash Alaei completed three years of his six-year sentence and that, according to Iranian law for first-time prisoners, he is eligible for release now. With Dr. Arash Alaei’s release, both of the Drs. Alaei can continue their life-saving work for the benefit of all humanity.

Dr. Arash Alaei is the former Director of the International Education and Research Cooperation of the Iranian National Research Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease. He has worked tirelessly to address HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and addiction and has demonstrated unwavering dedication to helping improve the lives of his countrymen and women by protecting them from disease and death.

We believe that ending Dr. Alaei’s confinement will benefit public health in Iran and will have a positive impact on the international medical community and the efforts to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS.

We respectfully ask your government to give freedom to Dr. Arash Alaei so he can return to saving lives in Iran.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]

Sign the Petition