Call for Omid Kokabi's Release in Letter from Thousands of Civil Activists to Ban Ki-moon

Thousands of political and civil activists from Iran and abroad have sent a letter to Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, urging him to use all available means to secure the release of Omid Kokabi. The letter, signed by 16,000 individuals and sent to Radio Farda as well, calls on Ban Ki-moon to respond appropriately to the 'injustice of the Iranian government' regarding Omid Kokabi, a imprisoned physicist, as the highest official of the United Nations for the 'preservation of humanity.' The letter references Kokabi's background and biography, stating that his refusal to cooperate with the Islamic Republic's military projects and his connections with scientific centers and universities outside Iran were the reasons for his arrest. It further mentions Kokabi's poor health condition and his battle with cancer, emphasizing that he should not remain in prison, as continued incarceration could cause irreparable harm to his health. Among the notable signatories of this letter are Shirin Ebadi, a lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate; Nasrin Sotoudeh, a lawyer and human rights activist; Mohammad Maleki, former president of Tehran University and social activist; Jafar Panahi, a filmmaker; Mohammad Mostafaei, a lawyer; Parastoo Forouhar, an artist; and Nira Tohidi, a professor at California State University. A copy of this letter has also been sent to the international campaign for the immediate release of Omid Kokabi. In the days following the release of a photo of Kokabi in the hospital after undergoing a nephrectomy (kidney removal), there was a significant reaction on social media regarding his condition. Last Thursday, the hashtag #FreeOmid managed to trend at the top of Twitter for several hours, with over three hundred thousand tweets using this hashtag. Omid Kokabi, born in 1982, entered Sharif University of Technology by ranking 29th in the national university entrance exam and studied both physics and mechanics simultaneously. After completing his bachelor's degree, he went to Spain, where he obtained his master's and doctorate in atomic physics with a focus on lasers, and eventually pursued a postdoctoral degree in atomic physics with a focus on laser research at the University of Texas. Five years ago, he traveled to Iran to visit his family, but when he attempted to leave Iran and return to the United States, he was arrested at the airport and sentenced to ten years in prison in the initial ruling, a sentence that was unchanged upon appeal. On January 9, 2012, in his second letter to the head of the judiciary, he referred to the Islamic Republic's proposal for cooperation on the nuclear case and questioned how someone accused of espionage could be offered access to the most confidential and secretive secrets of the regime. It is still unclear whether Omid Kokabi has been discharged from Sina Hospital and returned to prison. In this context, Amnesty International has protested the denial of permission for Kokabi's treatment. The 'Freedom and Scientific Responsibility' award has been designated for the imprisoned physicist in Iran. Kokabi's mother has written to Khamenei, asking for her son to be released in the new academic year. Kokabi's lawyer has stated that basic medical services have long been denied to him. Kokabi faces accusations that are 'unacceptable.' His prison sentence has been sent to the appeals court.