The Open Society Institute is deeply troubled by the Iranian government's recent decision prohibiting cooperation with international organizations. Although the Open Society Institute does not have any activities whatsoever in Iran we remain extremely concerned about the fate of Dr. Kian Tajbakhsh.
Dr. Tajbakhsh is an internationally respected scholar who as a consultant for OSI from 2004-2007 worked on humanitarian and public health projects in Iran. We note that at the time when OSI did work in Iran, the Iranian government sought the expertise of the Open Society Institute for help in these and other projects, such as humanitarian relief for the 2003 earthquake in Bam.
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