Deputy of the Environmental Organization 'Has Not Returned to Iran After Announcing Resignation'

Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, reported that Kaveh Madani, the deputy of Iran's Environmental Organization, has left the country, citing a 'reliable source.' In a tweet, Sadeghi stated, 'Today I heard from a reliable source that Kaveh Madani, the deputy of the Environmental Protection Organization, has left Iran. A lesson for Iranian elites residing abroad.' According to this representative, Mr. Madani's wife, who had been 'banned from leaving the country,' has also left after the ban was lifted. The website 'Ensaaf News' reported that the deputy of the Environmental Organization, who was abroad when controversial photos of him were released by hardliners, did not return to the country. According to this report, Mr. Madani resigned from abroad after 'the publication of images and media attacks against him' while he was on a work trip, and his resignation was accepted. After the news of his resignation and departure from the country, Mr. Madani tweeted, 'If the world takes a turn for the worse, do not take hope from my heart; if a lie brings me a shortcoming, do not turn my path away from truth.' Kaveh Madani, born in 1981 in Tehran, is a former professor of system analysis and policy-making at the prestigious 'Imperial College' in London. He was invited to work for the Environmental Organization of Iran during Hassan Rouhani's second term. He had previously stated that his friends and family opposed his desire to accept an official position in the Islamic Republic, considering it 'madness.' Following accusations of 'espionage' against several environmental activists in Iran and the arrest of some, including Kavous Seyed-Emami from 'Persian Wildlife Heritage,' news of Kaveh Madani's arrest also surfaced. Although this news was not officially confirmed, reports indicated that Mr. Madani, one day after his arrest, on February 12, 2018, attended his office with several agents and removed some documents for submission to security officials. Although judicial authorities did not provide an explanation for Mr. Madani's arrest, nor was his connection to the 'espionage' case of the arrested environmental activists clarified, this event marked the beginning of pressures against him. In April of this year, some hardline media outlets published images from 'a party in Malaysia,' claiming that Mr. Madani was 'partying and dancing,' arguing that such a person should not hold a managerial position in the Islamic Republic. After this news was published, Mr. Madani released a list of countries he had traveled to, stating that he had not yet traveled to Malaysia. It seems that the release of these images, along with the continued detention of environmental activists and the death of Kavous Seyed-Emami in prison, which judicial authorities attributed to 'suicide,' led Mr. Madani to decide to resign. Previously, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, had stated that the detainees in the 'Persian Wildlife Heritage' case were accused of 'espionage' and, according to him, were 'guided by CIA and Mossad officers to pursue three missions, including environmental issues, infiltration into Iran's scientific community, and gathering information from sensitive and vital locations in the country, including missile bases.'