Latest news with #Swedish-Iranian
Fashion Network
3 days ago
- Business
- Fashion Network
Couture label ArdAzAei names Ulrik Garde Due as CEO
Swedish couture label ArdAzAei has reached a new milestone by appointing a CEO. The label, which shows at Paris haute couture week as invited member and is known for its sustainable design, has tapped the luxury sector expertise of Danish executive Ulrik Garde Due, who has taken charge of the label to fast-track its growth. 'Ulrik is a highly experienced luxury industry executive. He has a thorough understanding of the industry and is capable of transforming creative excellence in market opportunities. This is a decisive step for our label. His leadership will enable us to balance our uncompromising artistic standards with the operational strength we need to grow,' said Johannes Falk, who co-founded ArdAzAei with Swedish-Iranian designer Bahareh Ardakani, the label's creative director. ArdAzAei premièred on the official Paris haute couture calendar in June 2024. The label has also developed a ready-to-wear line, which it intends to strengthen by creating a more extensive collection which will be presented at the next Paris Fashion Week Women, in October. Garde Due, who has worked in Asia, Europe and America, is a highly experienced luxury industry executive, having held senior positions at several fashion and jewellery brands. After studying business and marketing in Copenhagen, Paris and London, he worked for Celine, Cerruti and Burberry. In 2007, he took charge of Danish jewellery brand Georg Jensen. Six years later, he was named CEO of British fashion label Temperley London, and in 2016 he took charge of a division of Finnish kitchenware producer Fiskars Group. At the end of 2018, he was named CEO of long-established US luxury leather goods brand Mark Cross. In parallel, Garde Due became chairman of the board of consulting firm Positive Luxury, a sustainability specialist, and operational chairman of the board at Danish label Cecilie Bahnsen, which shows in Paris. 'With this appointment, ArdAzAei is affirming its vision: to gear up for sustainable growth, transforming the brand with rigour and preparing the label for a new stage in its international expansion,' said the label in a press release. ArdAzAei was founded in Stockholm in 2018 and established a presence in Paris in 2022, opening a store and an atelier near place de la Concorde, at 11 rue Saint-Florentin. ArdAzAei's sophisticated minimalist style 'is a blend of French expertise, Persian heritage, and Scandinavian design principles,' and takes great care to respect the environment. Most of the items in its next ready-to-wear collection will be 'GOTS-certified and crafted from organic, custom-developed textiles. The garments will be produced in EPV-certified ateliers in France (entreprise du patrimoine vivant, or living heritage company), ensuring full traceability,' said ArdAzAei.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'No more empty statements:' Iran ex-detainees press Sweden over death row academic
Over 20 foreign nationals who themselves endured years of captivity in Iran on Wednesday urged Sweden to step up efforts to free a Swedish-Iranian citizen sentenced to death in the country, after he had a heart attack last week. Ahmadreza Djalali, an academic who was sentenced to death in 2017 on espionage charges he denies, suffered a heart attack in Tehran's Evin prison, his wife said Friday. Djalali, 53, is among a number of Europeans held by Iran in what some countries including France call a deliberate hostage-taking strategy to extract concessions from the West at a time of tension over Tehran's nuclear programme. Djalali's condition, "worsened by years of medical neglect and psychological torment, is now dire," said the 21 former detainees including British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, Australian Kylie Moore-Gilbert and US-Iranian Siamak Namazi, who were freed only after years-long ordeals in prison. "While the Islamic Republic and its heinous practice of hostage diplomacy is the clear culprit here, we are deeply troubled by your government's failure to use the means at its disposal to rescue Dr Djalali," they said in the letter addressed to Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson via Stockholm's embassy in Washington. "No more empty statements. Sweden must act with the same urgency and resolve it has shown in securing the freedom of other citizens," they added in the letter seen by AFP. Djalali was granted Swedish nationality while in jail. - 'A path home' - The letter said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had offered a possible way forward in a recent social media post that it said "implicitly linked" the case to Iran's inability to access treatment for epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a disease that affects hundreds of Iranian children and can be fatal without proper care. "The specialised wound dressings required to treat EB, produced by a Swedish company, have long been blocked due to over-compliance with sanctions," the letter said. In a post on X last week that lamented a "regrettable shift" in bilateral relations, Araghchi said "Sweden ceased non-sanctionable exports of medicines, including specialised and unique gear for children afflicted with EB". In June 2024, Tehran freed two Swedes held in Iran in exchange for Hamid Noury, a former Iranian prisons official serving a life sentence in Sweden. To the disappointment of his family, Djalali was not included in the swap. In the letter, the ex-detainees told Kristersson: "A path to bring Dr Djalali home -- alive, not in a coffin -- appears within reach. "If Sweden fails to pursue it seriously and this Swedish citizen dies in captivity, history will record that your government had more than one chance to save him -- but chose not to. That responsibility will rest squarely with you." cf-sjw/as/js
Local Sweden
12-05-2025
- Health
- Local Sweden
Swedish-Iranian academic Ahmadreza Djalali denied relevant care after heart attack: lawyer
Swedish-Iranian academic Ahmadreza Djalali, who is on death row in Iran, has been denied proper care after suffering a heart attack last week, his Swedish lawyer said on Monday. Advertisement Djalali, an Iranian who was sentenced to death in 2017 on espionage charges and was granted Swedish nationality while in jail, suffered a heart attack in Tehran's Evin prison, his wife said on Friday. Nima Rostami, Djalali's lawyer in Sweden, told AFP his client had still not received appropriate care. "The nature of this type of disease requires that people should undergo various types of tests in hospital, including an EKG (electrocardiogram)... But such treatment has so far not been provided," Rostami said. He said Djalali had seen a doctor on Friday and then a specialist on Saturday, who had both confirmed the heart attack. "He has received basic care," the lawyer said but "has been denied" relevant care. According to Rostami, the prison had promised that equipment would be brought to the prison so that tests could be performed on site but that had still not happened. "The specialised treatment has so far not been administered despite the fact that he still has a low pulse," he said, adding that Djalali's general health condition was poor. Advertisement Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said on Friday that she had "spoken urgently... with the Iranian foreign minister". "During the conversation, I demanded that Ahmadreza Djalali immediately receive the specialised care he needs," she said in a post on X, repeating a Swedish demand that Djalali be released. In a post on X on Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Djalali had "access to medical care" and accused Sweden of undermining ties. "Instead of walking further into a dead end, I call on my Swedish counterpart @MariaStenergard to reconsider the choices that have brought us (to) where we are today," he said. He criticised Sweden's decision to grant citizenship "to a convicted criminal AFTER his sentencing". Iran does not recognise dual nationality. In June 2024, Tehran freed two Swedes held in Iran in exchange for Hamid Noury, a former Iranian prisons official serving a life sentence in Sweden. Djalali was not included in the swap. Western countries have long accused Iran of detaining foreign nationals on trumped-up charges to use them as bargaining chips to extract concessions.
CairoScene
05-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
Ed Sheeran Collaborates with Iranian Producer Ilya Salmanzadeh
'my dear one' explores the intersection of celebratory Persian and Irish folk elements within a framework of shimmering pop production. Apr 05, 2025 British pop artist Ed Sheeran has released a collaborative single titled 'Azizam' with Swedish-Iranian producer and songwriter Ilya Salmanzadeh. For those unfamiliar, Salmanzadeh has built a reputation as one of the most influential figures in the global music industry, producing hits for artists including Ellie Goulding, Ariana Grande, Charli XCX, and Sam Smith to name a few. The track, whose title translates to 'my dear one' in Farsi, explores the intersection of celebratory Persian and Irish folk elements within a framework of shimmering pop production. Sheeran's signature percussive guitar riffs—echoing sonic cues from his classic hit 'Galway Girl'-intertwine smoothly with rhythmic loops of daf and santur melodies, resulting in catchy hooks that stick from the first listen. While the intricate production of 'Azizam' draws significant influence from Iranian musical heritage, the song stays within the general structure of Sheeran's pop template. It marks, however, a refreshing effort in commercial pop, further demonstrating Sheeran's penchant for experimenting with cross-cultural collaborations. 'Although the song is completely different from any work I've done previously, it still sounds familiar to me. I wanted to evoke a lively, celebratory atmosphere, and Ilya helped me achieve this vision. Working with him was really fun,' Sheeran told SceneNoise. The music video for Azizam, directed by Liam Pethick, depicts Sheeran playfully walking through bustling streets across the US and UK, armed with a heart-shaped pink balloon. His lighthearted and cheerful demeanor reflects the track's uplifting spirit.
