Intelligence

Two Doctors Convicted In Iran Conspiracy Case

January 20, 2009

TEHRAN -- Two doctors known for their AIDS-prevention work have been found guilty of being involved in organizing a plot to overthrow the Iranian government.

Masoud Shafie, a lawyer for the two brothers, told Radio Farda that Arash Alaei was sentenced to six years and his brother Kamyar Alaei to three years in jail.

Kamiar and Arash Alaei have been in custody since June, and the European Union has called for their release. Rights groups including Human Rights Watch, the International Campaign for Human Rights, and Physicians for Human Rights have condemned the arrests and legal processes as unfair and politically motivated.

The brothers are known as Iran's leading specialists in HIV/AIDS.

Reports had already emerged suggesting the Alaei brothers were convicted in a secret trial in early January.

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/Two_Doctors_Convicted_In_Iran_Conspiracy_Case/1372570.html

Copyright (c) 2009. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.