The sons of an Iranian-Canadian university professor who died in a Tehran prison last month have urged Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to speak out publicly and pressure the Iranian government to free their mother.
They also want Canada to seriously investigate their father's arrest and death.
Ramin and Mehran Seyed-Emami said in a joint interview that they have been speaking out despite intimidation and threats. They said they believe it is their only hope for getting their mother back to Vancouver after she was stopped at the airport on March 7 and barred from leaving Iran.
Their father, Kavous Seyed-Emami, a 63-year-old professor of sociology at Imam Sadeq University in Tehran and the managing director of the Persian Heritage Wildlife Foundation, died in February. His death sparked new anger in Iran over the treatment of detainees, especially after nearly 5,000 people were arrested in the wake of nationwide protests at the start of the year.
Iranian authorities told the family that Seyed-Emami killed himself while in custody. But Ramin, a musician who performs under the stage name King Raam, said he and his brother "feel that the guards in the prison are responsible directly for his death".
He said he was shown video of his father in a cell, pacing around, taking off his shirt, and going into the bathroom. Then "eight hours later they come in and they bring the body out of that room, so there is no footage or film of the death or how it happened", Ramin said.
"The fact that he was unmonitored for eight hours is such a suspicious thing," Ramin added.
He complained that the family is "not being allowed to pursue a proper investigation into his death, or why he was arrested in the first place, or how he was treated the whole time".
Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi alleged the professor was part of an espionage ring that collected information on "strategic areas".
The brothers vehemently defended his innocence. "There is no shred of evidence against him, nothing," Mehran said.
Mehran said his father's legacy "was one of building bridges, of uniting people".
"He was a lover of not just Iran but its wildlife, its people," Mehran said.
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Mehran said his father encouraged his sons to vote in Iran's election for moderate President Hassan Rouhani, "to vote for change, to vote for hope".
"We cannot believe the lack of support we've seen from the Iranian government," he said. "It's so unfortunate that they would do this to one of their sons."
Ramin and Mehran met Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland in New York on Wednesday to urge pressure to be stepped up on Iran.
"She reassured us they're doing their best to get my mother home as soon as possible," Mehran said. "We are grateful for their effort but … we need them to speak up publicly, not just privately."
"We asked for the prime minister, Mr Trudeau, to make an official statement on behalf of the government, to pressure the Iranian government to release my mother, and to have a serious investigation into the case of my father," he said.
The brothers said leaving Iran without their mother, Maryam Mombeini, was very difficult. Ramin said she implored them to board the plane and go without her.
Their house in Iran was raided twice, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards packed documents, computers, hard drives, photo albums of their childhood and other items into eight suitcases in the first raid, Ramin said.
Ramin said Iranian authorities started a campaign of intimidation after their father's arrest. He said it included constant surveillance, death threats and "a very disgusting smear campaign against our family using footage that they had stolen from our home when they raided the place".
"They put this all up on national television," he said, "and slowing down the film and putting some scary music on it and attacking my father's character."
He said that he and Mehran started to speak out anyway.
"We really believe speaking out actually ensured more safety and security for us," Ramin said. "They wanted us to stay silent and be afraid."
Ramin said his mother is now relying on family and friends for financial support because Iranian authorities seized the deeds to the family home and the other assets they had.
"We just want to have her home as soon as possible," Mehran said. "Our father lives inside of us and I am sure he is proud of us for being outspoken, for standing up for what's right, for the truth."
Results
4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$300,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Emblem Storm, Oisin Murphy (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Wafy, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 $350,000 (Turf) 1,200m; Winner: Wildman Jack, Fernando Jara, Doug O’Neill.
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $400,000 (T) 1,800m; Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $600,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Matterhorn, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
7.30pm: Dubai City Of Gold Group 2 $350,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Loxley, Mickael Barzalona, Charlie Appleby.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Dolittle
Director: Stephen Gaghan
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Michael Sheen
One-and-a-half out of five stars
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
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If you go
The Flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Johannesburg from Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. Economy return tickets cost from Dh2,650, including taxes.
The trip
Worldwide Motorhoming Holidays (worldwidemotorhomingholidays.co.uk) operates fly-drive motorhome holidays in eight destinations, including South Africa. Its 14-day Kruger and the Battlefields itinerary starts from Dh17,500, including campgrounds, excursions, unit hire and flights. Bobo Campers has a range of RVs for hire, including the 4-berth Discoverer 4 from Dh600 per day.
The%20specs
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Naga
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
