Morad Tahbaz is an Iranian-American businessman and conservationist. He was born in London and holds British citizenship. Tahbaz is a co-founder of the Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation (PWHF). In January 2018, Iranian authorities arrested Tahbaz along with eight other PWHF-affiliated individuals. In 2018, an Iranian Presidential Commission composed of Cabinet Ministers appointed by Iranian President Rouhani investigated allegations of spying and concluded that the facts do not support the claims against Tahbaz or his colleagues. Iranian Lawmaker Mahmud Sadeghi said that Tabhaz and his colleagues did nothing wrong and “must be freed soon.” In November 2019, the Iranian judiciary sentenced Tahbaz to 10 years in prison for "contacts with the US enemy government." In June 2020 and on the occasion of

World Environment Day World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated annually on 5 June and encourages awareness and action for the protection of the environment. It is supported by many non-governmental organizations, businesses, government entities, and represents the ...

US Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other ...

called for the release of Morad Tahbaz. In a video message,

Brian Hook Brian H. Hook (born 1968) is an American lawyer and government official. He served as U.S. Special Representative for Iran and Senior Policy Advisor to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo from September 2018 to August 2020. He previously served as the ...

encouraged governments to join this call to end the detention of Tahbaz and his colleagues. Tahbaz's family is a part of the

Bring Our Families Home Bring Our Families Home (BOFH) is a campaign by family members of American hostages and wrongfully held detainees advocating for their immediate release. The James Foley Legacy Foundation estimates that there are approximately sixty Americans who ...

campaign which works to bring home wrongful detainees and hostages. Tahbaz was released from prison 'on furlough' on March 16, 2022. He was returned to prison two days later. He was ultimately freed from imprisonment in Iran on September 18, 2023, as part of an Iran–United States prisoner release mediated by

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

Education

Tahbaz graduated from

Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York. The college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and operated under that name until 1823, when it was renamed Hamilton Theologi ...

in 1977 with a degree in liberal arts and from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 1983 with an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tahbaz, Morad Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American people of Iranian descent 21st-century American businesspeople American conservationists American people imprisoned in Iran Iranian prisoners and detainees Iranian conservationists Colgate University alumni Columbia Business School alumni British people of Iranian descent

Education

See also

References