Five US citizens flew home yesterday after being held hostage for years in Iran. Siamak Namazi, who was imprisoned for nearly eight years; Morad Tahbaz, an Iranian who also holds US and UK citizenship; and Emad Shargi were all held in the notorious Evin prison (the other two have not been publicly named at the request of their families).
In exchange, the US released five Iranians and allowed South Korea to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian oil funds to Qatar.
Their release brings the number of wrongfully detained Americans brought home under Joe Biden to 35 – a sign, says former detainee Jason Rezaian, that hostage-taking by state actors is “spiralling out of control”.
Namazi, 51, urged the Biden administration to launch a “game-changing global endeavour” to end Iran’s practice of arresting foreigners and dual nationals, saying in a statement that Evin prison had become a “dystopian United Nations of Hostages”.
Two other US residents, Shahab Dalili and Jamshid Sharmahd, remain imprisoned in Iran.
Biden, who has been criticised by Republicans over the deal, welcomed the prisoners’ release and immediately announced new sanctions on the Iranian intelligence ministry and former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad under the Levinson Act, named after former FBI agent Bob Levinson who disappeared in 2007 from an island off Iran’s southern coast.
A US official said the deal “had not changed” the Biden administration’s stance on Iran. It comes as Tehran continues to advance its nuclear programme, supply weapons to Russia and viciously restrict domestic unrest, one year after the death of 22 year-old Mahsa Amini in custody sparked nationwide protests.
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