The Iranian judiciary spokesman claimed yesterday that “new evidence” has been discovered and that Iranian authorities are continuing the investigations of Kian and Haleh Esfandiari.  The Open Society Insitute and the Wilson Center have both issued statements rejecting Iran’s allegations and calling for the immediate release of the detainees. 

The Open Society Institute’s statement said in part:

The Open Society Institute is dismayed by the Iranian government’s announcement of new allegations against Dr. Kian Tajbakhsh, an internationally respected scholar and American citizen who has been held in Tehran’s Evin Prison since May 11.

In the two months since his arrest, the Iranian authorities have offered nothing to substantiate any allegations of wrongdoing by Dr. Tajbakhsh. These vague allusions to new evidence in the case against him are equally unfounded.

The Wilson Center press release:

rejected as totally without merit the suggestion that Iran has discovered new evidence that Haleh Esfandiari, director of the Center’s Middle East Program, acted against Iran’s national security.

Esfandiari was arrested by the Iranian government on May 8, and has been held in solitary confinement in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison for over two months. She continues to be denied access to her family, her lawyers, the Swiss government, and international organizations like the Red Cross.