EMILY KWONG, HOST:
On Friday, the U.S. and Iran began a new set of indirect negotiations. Iran wants to focus on its nuclear program, but the U.S. wants more and is keeping up the pressure. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and other warships are stationed in the Arabian Sea, and that's in response to Tehran's recent crackdown on nationwide protests, which killed thousands of Iranians and detained tens of thousands more.
And caught in the middle of all of this is journalist Abdolreza - known as Reza - Valizadeh, who's being held in Evin Prison. The U.S. State Department says his is a wrongful detention, and Reza Valizadeh's lawyer, Ryan Fayhee, has filed a petition with the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to get him out. Ryan Fayhee joins me now. Welcome to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED.
RYAN FAYHEE: Thanks so much for having me.
KWONG: Why was Reza Valizadeh detained?
FAYHEE: Well, it's a long story. It actually has its origins all the way back in 2009 around the Green Revolution. It's actually the way that Reza became a journalist. He began to report on the protests at that time. And ultimately, because of his reporting, he was exiled from Iran and spent many years outside of Iran, working for Radio Free Europe and its Persian language broadcast station called Farda. And ultimately, because he was reporting on the various misdeeds and humanitarian issues in Iran, he was ultimately targeted by the Iranian government. And the reason he's in prison today is because of that reporting.
KWONG: When he returned to care for his parents, he was picked up.
FAYHEE: That's exactly right.
KWONG: What are the conditions like in Evin, the prison where he's being held?
FAYHEE: Well, Evin has a reputation for a reason. He's held in a political wing. There's been a couple of photos posted online showing other political prisoners. They sit shoulder to shoulder. And most challenging is the Israeli airstrikes on Evin Prison targeting members of the Iranian regime. Reza was there in the prison at the time that it was attacked and, unfortunately, was impacted by that, had to be removed to another prison and has only recently been brought back to Evin now, alongside many of the protesters we've seen in the news who've been brought into the prison as well. So it's a really miserable situation.
KWONG: How are you able to know about his condition given the partial internet and communication blackout? How do you even know what he's doing?
FAYHEE: Well, it's been a real challenge. We've been able to communicate in a couple of ways. First, we're in touch with Reza's family. And then also, there's a number of organizations out there who work on issues involving journalists being targeted in this way by antidemocratic regimes who've been very helpful. And then I've actually received a couple of voice memos from Reza himself from within Evin Prison, which was...
KWONG: Wow.
FAYHEE: ...Quite a surprise.
KWONG: And we have that first memo you got. Let's listen.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
REZA VALIZADEH: Dear Ryan, hope you are doing well. This is Reza Valizadeh. You have been so kind to offer your help. That's really kind of you. I really appreciate it. I was working as a journalist and news anchor in Radio Free Europe.
KWONG: Wow.
FAYHEE: Which has been, I hope, encouraging for him, and it's been useful for me in order to hear his voice and for him to know from me that we're doing everything we can here in Washington, D.C., to try to get him released.
KWONG: Now, Reza, he's a journalist. He's an Iranian American citizen. Have you received any communications from the Trump administration about his case?
FAYHEE: Yes, I have. I have a long history of representing wrongfully detained Americans. It's a sad, recent history, unfortunately, because a number of Americans have been targeted. And the good news is that the U.S. government has really evolved the so-called hostage enterprise between the State Department, the White House, stakeholders on Capitol Hill. And I was very encouraged that each of these stakeholders seem to have a deep understanding of Reza's case. They seem to understand the facts, and I was strongly encouraged by that. And I'm hopeful, given the talks that appear to be breaking...
KWONG: Over Iran's nuclear program?
FAYHEE: Among other topics. And I'm very, very hopeful that as part of that dialogue, Reza's case will be raised.
KWONG: Of course, this is all happening against a very tense backdrop. Analysts estimate that thousands of Iranians were killed during the recent protests against the regime. Possibly tens of thousands more are incarcerated. And President Trump has been weighing a possible strike on Iran. So are you concerned your client will be caught in the middle of all of these tensions?
FAYHEE: Yes, I'm deeply concerned. The U.S. has a lot of legitimate issues to raise with the Iranians. And what I don't want is for detained American citizens to be lost in those communications. We recognize that there are broader issues relating to Iran's nuclear program, the use of proxies and otherwise, but these conversations and, you know, maybe resolution can't be held on the back of wrongfully detained Americans. And so I'm very hopeful that as part of these conversations and this dialogue, that every conversation will begin and end with a request that these wrongfully detained Americans be released.
KWONG: What is one thing you want people to know about Reza?
FAYHEE: Yeah, I want people to know that Reza is somebody that, you know, I've come to know deeply courageous. You know, to be a journalist in Iran and speak the truth, to be exiled from your family for years and years and years and then to continue that reporting from afar and then have the courage to return to care for his family, this is the type of person that Reza is. You know, the targeting of an American for being a journalist really goes to the very heart of American ideals. And I think it's really important that the United States not let Iran get away with this, to use Reza as an example to deter other journalists from reporting the truth in these faraway, difficult places.
KWONG: That's Ryan Fayhee, legal counsel to Reza Valizadeh. Thank you for coming on ALL THINGS CONSIDERED.
FAYHEE: Thanks so much. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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