A British-Iranian anthropologist sentenced in November to more than nine years in prison in Iran fled the country to the UK and now lives in London.
Kameel Ahmady, accused of conspiring with “a hostile state power”, spent 100 days in Tehran’s notorious Evin jail, where he was subject to interrogation and a period of solitary confinement. He was out on bail while he appealed against his sentence.
Mr Ahmady was researching female genital mutilation in Iran, a deeply sensitive topic in the country, and called for the age of child marriage to be raised. He said he left Iran “out of despair”.
"Once I had been sentenced I had a choice of whether I would stay and not see my family and four-year-old child until he was 14, or to risk fleeing," Mr Ahmady told The Guardian.
He smuggled himself over Iran’s snowy and foggy mountain border, believing that his case was politically motivated and he had little chance of a successful appeal – which was rejected in his absence on Monday.
“I am Kurdish by ethnicity and I know some of the routes, but it was very dangerous. I had to try several times,” Mr Ahmady said.
His arrest in the summer of 2019 came at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and the UK after British marines helped seize an Iranian vessel off Gibraltar that was suspected of breaching EU sanctions by sending oil to Syria.
“By the first week of the interrogation, the British ship was released, but I had no access to the media. I was in solitary confinement. So the only source of information I had was the interrogators.
"And one day, this guy just came and he was so happy. He said, ‘Thank you. Thank you very much. We got our ship back. And I think you made a difference here. So thank you for this, but we still really have a long way to go with you.’
“And I said, ‘So what’s that got to do with me?’ He said, ‘Wow, come on. You are British, you are worth a lot. Britain is the cradle of human rights so of course you are worth a lot to them'.”
He described the harsh conditions he had faced during a period of his detention when he was isolated from the outside world.
“There is no natural light, and a window in the prison door opens through which they put your food. That is your only communication with the outside world. It is incredibly quiet, and you just become crazy. You don’t know what time it is, and you don’t know what will happen next,” he said.
“When you are taken out to go to the toilet, or half an hour’s fresh air or to be interrogated, you are blindfolded. And then your interrogation becomes your lifeline, it’s so sad that you want to be interrogated more because that is the only way you can communicate with a fellow human being.
“They were trying very hard to portray me as someone sent off to Iran by the British, recruited by foreign powers to try to influence certain people in the government.”
Mr Ahmady is one of many dual citizens detained by Iran on charges that campaigners and governments say are politically motivated and unfounded.
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
RedCrow Intelligence Company Profile
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