Status:
Currently detained
Classified as:
Wrongful Detainee
Detained in:
Date of detention:
2024
Reza Valizadeh is a 49-year-old journalist and dual Iranian American national. After leaving Iran in 2009, Reza returned to Iran for the first time to visit his elderly parents in March 2024 after a high-ranking commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) guaranteed his safety to return. However, Reza was arrested by the IRGC in September 2024. Since his arrest, Reza has been interrogated and held in solitary confinement. He was sentenced, without legal due process, to ten years imprisonment on charges of “collaboration with a hostile government” a vague charge often used by Iranian authorities to target dual nationals and those who dare to criticize the Iranian regime. In May 2025, Reza was officially designated as wrongfully detained by the Secretary of State.
Reza’s health has greatly deteriorated since being detained. He suffers from asthma and significant dental problems, which have been exacerbated by overcrowding and poor air quality in Evin Prison, where he has been held. These conditions have worsened following Israel’s strike on Evin prison in June 2025 and the Iranian government’s most recent, violent crackdown on protestors, resulting in a large volume of new arrests. Reza shares a cell with multiple men and has been repeatedly denied proper nutrition and medical care.
Reza’s case is not an isolated incident, but part of a broader pattern of Iran’s targeting of journalists and dual nationals, especially American citizens. Reza’s case mirrors the wrongful detention of Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, who was imprisoned in Iran for 544 days. Like Jason, Reza was charged with vague national security offenses based on his journalism and his outspoken critiques of the Iranian regime.
Reza’s imprisonment is unjust and politically motivated. Journalism is not a crime, and the United States government must act to secure his immediate release and hold Iran accountable for its history of silencing those exercising their fundamental right to report the truth.
Learn more about Reza’s story here: https://www.freerezav.com/.
