WASHINGTON, June 12 (UPI) -- A renewed plea has been made to the Iranian government to free incarcerated U.S. Middle East expert Haleh Esfandiari.
The Iranian-born Esfandiari is director of the Washington-based think tank Woodrow Wilson Center’s Middle East Program. She was imprisoned in early May by the Iranian authorities. The Wilson Center has stepped up efforts to call for her release, and on Tuesday John Sitilides, the center’s Southeast Europe project head, said the Wilson Center had “gone public with its campaign to increase awareness of our dear and beloved colleague Haleh Esfandiari.”
Esfandiari also taught Iranian literature at Princeton University and has lived in the United States for more than 25 years, traveling extensively in the Middle East during that time. Her most recent visit to Iran in December 2006 was to visit with her 93-year-old ailing mother.
Since May 8, Esfandiari has been incarcerated at Iran’s Evin Prison, known for housing political prisoners. According to the Wilson Center, she has been charged with “espionage, actions against national security and propaganda against the Islamic Republic.”
Esfandiari’s supporters argue that she has been denied access to her legal defense team, which includes Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi.
According to the Wilson Center, reports from Tehran indicated that a judge will decide within the next few days whether to indict or free four Iranian-Americans, including Esfandiari, charged with endangering national security, Iran’s judiciary spokesman said Tuesday. Ali Reza Jamshidi said a judge would complete his preliminary investigation into the charges.
