Mourning the Passing of Ali Ajami

We at the Center for Human Rights in Iran mourn the death of our former colleague Ali Ajami, and express our deepest condolences to his family and friends.

Ali was a university student activist in Iran who paid a heavy price for advocating civil and human rights. He was arrested in June 2009 at the height of a government crackdown on peaceful activism and ultimately spent two years in various Iranian prisons.

Ali was physically assaulted during his incarceration and suffered long-term effects. No one was ever held accountable for this abuse of prisoners’ rights, a practice that remains rampant in the country.

Despite this experience and likely because of it, Ali remained closely connected to his roots after moving to the United States where he continued to speak out for the rights of the Iranian people while working as a researcher for non-profit organizations.

Ali was a young, bright, compassionate individual who left this world much too soon. We are deeply saddened by his passing and look forward to the day when no Iranian feels compelled to leave their homeland in search of safety and opportunity.

May he rest in peace.

Read this article in Persian.