7.22.2008 - 03:00pm ET

(CSRwire) WASHINGTON, DC. - July 22, 2008 - The Aspen Institute today expressed its deep concern over recent reports of the arrest and detention of two internationally recognized Iranian physicians, the brothers Dr. Arash and Dr. Kamiar Alaei.

Dr. Arash Alaei and Dr. Kamiar Alaei are noted pioneers in HIV/AIDs prevention and treatment efforts in Iran. The Alaei brothers were featured participants in an Aspen Institute sponsored US-Iran health diplomacy forum held in Washington, DC in November 2006 and also participated in the Aspen Health Forum, co-sponsored by the Institute and The Atlantic magazine in October 2007 in Aspen, Colorado.

The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering enlightened leadership and open-minded dialogue and is completely outside the purview of the US Government.

"We hold the Alaei brothers in the highest regard and have deep concern over their recent detention," said Walter Isaacson, President and CEO of the Aspen Institute. "The Institute urges the Government of Iran to grant permission to the brothers' families to visit them and to disclose the circumstances leading to their arrest and detention."

For information on the US-Iran Health Diplomacy Forum (Nov 2006), contact Toni Verstandig, Executive Director of the Aspen Institute's Middle East Strategy Group (MESG) at 202-736-3843 or at toni.verstandig@aspeninstitute.org. For information on the Aspen Health Forum, contact Michelle McMurry, Director of the Institute's Health, Biomedical Science and Society Initiative, at 202-736-2535 or at michelle.mcmurry@aspeninstitute.org.


The Aspen Institute, founded in 1950, is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering enlightened leadership and open-minded dialogue. Through seminars, policy programs, conferences and leadership development initiatives, the Institute and its international partners seek to promote nonpartisan inquiry and an appreciation for timeless values. The Institute is headquartered in Washington, DC, and has campuses in Aspen, Colorado, and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. The Institute has partners in Berlin, Rome, Lyon, Tokyo, New Delhi, and Bucharest, and leadership programs in Africa, Central America and India.

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