Response of Ahmadreza Jalali's Wife to the Broadcast of His 'Confessions' on Iranian Television

The wife of Ahmadreza Jalali, a doctor sentenced to death, rejected the allegations against him in an interview with Radio Farda after Iranian state television aired a recorded video of his confessions on Sunday. Vida Mehran-Nia emphasized that these statements were recorded under pressure. In her conversation with Farhang Ghavimi from Radio Farda, she also stated that she had no knowledge of her husband's alleged meetings with an individual introduced as a recruitment agent. She referred to her husband's 'three months of solitary confinement' and the conditions of his detention, reminding that Ahmadreza Jalali is a scientific figure who faced threats to kill his children during his detention and was promised freedom in exchange for recording this video. Mehran-Nia also mentioned that they received a five-year residency in Sweden in 2015 under a law allowing doctoral students to stay. She has repeatedly asked the Swedish government to clarify this situation. In the interview, she asserted that her husband was under extreme pressure, especially since he was allowed to contact his family for only one minute each month during his three months in solitary confinement. She quoted her husband saying that if he mispronounced a sentence during the video recording, he was forced to stop and start over. Mehran-Nia also stated that if her husband had sensitive information, he would have been banned from leaving the country, recalling an incident when his laptop was stolen in Iran, and he was told at work that it was not a concern because he did not have access to specific information. She added that her last phone call with her husband was three days ago and that she has had no contact with his lawyer, Mr. Daryabigi. Following the return of her husband's death sentence from the Supreme Court, they have now filed a request for a retrial. On Sunday night, December 17, Iranian state television aired a recorded confession of Ahmadreza Jalali, prepared by the anti-espionage section of the Ministry of Intelligence. In this video, which combines Jalali's statements and information narrated by a speaker, it is claimed that this imprisoned doctor and researcher played a role in transferring information that led to the assassination of several Iranian researchers in Israel. Jalali's lawyers have previously stated that the evidence presented in the initial trial was obtained under pressure and they 'do not confirm the allegations against him in any way.' The televised confession segment is a common method used by the Islamic Republic to pressure political prisoners, and many organizations and human rights activists consider such confessions to be illegitimate. Previously, in 2012, when the Islamic Republic aired the televised confessions of 12 individuals accused of involvement in the assassination of its nuclear experts, Amnesty International strongly criticized this action, emphasizing that broadcasting confessions violates Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and infringes upon the rights of defendants and suspects.