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☆ Exclusive: American held for 8 years in notorious Iranian prison tells of ordeal
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-23 | by ( Ben Kirby | Claire Calzonetti | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Namazi previously spoke with Amanpour by phone in March 2023 from inside Iran’s notorious Evin Prison, in what was an unprecedented interview. “That is the smell of freedom.” Forty years later, Siamak Namazi emerged into the night air after eight years in prison. The logistics of his prison interview weren’t complicated. And it’s not just an American problem: Evin Prison is “a dystopian United Nations of hostages,” Namazi says, with many countries’ citizens behind bars. Emotion in his voice, Namazi tells Amanpour that, eventually, he’d like to meet the man who freed him.

Persons: Siamak, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, ”, Namazi, Amanpour, Babak, ” Namazi’s, Siamak Namazi, “, Jonathan Ernst, …, Joe, Biden, ” ‘, ” Namazi, Dave, I’m, “ unutterable, Namazi’s, Saddam, Hussein, ’, Zahra Kazemi, I’d, Jared Genser, Genser, he’d, could’ve, Christiane Amanpour, Neil Hallsworth, crackly, Emad, Morad Tahbaz, Donald Trump, –, Antony Blinken, Janet Yellen, wasn’t, Biden’s Organizations: CNN, Obama, Trump, Getty, State Department, New York Times, Evin, Republicans, United Nations, United, Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Locations: American, Iran, United States, AFP, ”, Evin, America, Vienna, Austria, United States of America, Republic, White Plains , New York, Islamic Republic, Iranian, New York, United Nations

☆ Iran Pardons 4 Environmental Activists to Commemorate Eid al-Fitr, Lawyer Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Yonette Joseph | Leily Nikounazar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Iran has pardoned and begun freeing four environmental activists who spent several years in prison on espionage charges, Iranian state media said on Monday. The pardons were granted to commemorate Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic holiday celebrated at the end of Ramadan, according to their lawyer. Iran has a tradition of freeing prisoners, but not political ones, around religious holidays. Mr. Bayani and Mr. Jokar were freed on Monday, according to images posted by their families on social media. A lawyer for the activists, Hojjat Kermani, said he expected the other two to be freed at a later time.

Persons: Eid, Morad Tahbaz, Niloufar, Sepideh Kashani, Taher Qadirian, Houman Jokar, Bayani, Jokar, Hojjat Kermani Locations: Iran, United States, Iranian

☆ Surgery without drugs, patients piling up: Gaza’s hospitals overwhelmed as power run out
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —In Al-Shifa hospital, Gaza’s largest medical facility, a dazed and drowsy woman sits on the floor with a bleeding leg. “The situation in hospitals is miserable… (it) makes you weep,” Rajaa Musleh, a 50-year-old woman sheltering at Al-Shifa, told CNN on Thursday. ‘Overloaded’Hospital staff are exhausted, Dr. Alaa Shitali, a medical officer at Al-Shifa’s emergency department, told CNN Tuesday. “And the doctors are left to treat them with limited pain control, (as they are) running out of anesthetic drugs.” she told CNN. Hospitals in the besieged and heavily battered enclave are “hanging by a thread,” the UN said Monday, adding that around 10 hospitals in Gaza are still operational.

Persons: Rajaa, ”, Musleh, Mustafa Hassona, Alaa, “, Shitali, Tanya Haj, Hassan, Gaza’s, Israel, Sobhi Skaik, Skaik, Khan, Ahmad Hasaballah, Atef Al Kahlout, Ali Jadallah, Bashar Morad, Morad, ” Morad, ” Musleh Organizations: CNN, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs, UN’s, Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, Getty, Palestinian Ministry of Health, ’ Hospital, Al, of Health, Nasser Medical Hospital, Israel Defense Forces, Care International, Quds Hospital, The, Care, UN, Palestinian, Crescent, Palestinian Red Crescent Society Locations: Al, Gaza, Anadolu, Ramallah, Gaza City, Israel, Turkish, Palestinian, Hamas, Khan Younis, GAZA, Quds, Tel al, The Geneva

☆ Inside the crucial final hours as American diplomats tackled last minute obstacles to bring five Americans imprisoned in Iran home
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Jennifer Hansler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Senior State Department officials spoke to CNN about what happened on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive details. The Iranians even threatened not to include all five of the Americans in the release unless the US did more, the officials told CNN. “We held our line and the Iranians backed down and we made it work,” a senior State Department official said. But the Qatari officials, in a smooth diplomatic maneuver, countered that they would be offended if everyone did not eat while on board the Qatari plane and an agonizing final delay was avoided. ET, the US plane carrying the seven Americans, Carstens, Paley and other US officials departed Doha en route to the US.

Persons: Iran Abram Paley, Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, “, ”, didn’t, “ They’re, “ We’ve, “ couldn’t, Morad, Emad Shargi, Effie, Vida, Siamak, Karim Jaafar, Carstens, Paley, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Joe Biden, ” Shargi Organizations: CNN, Senior State Department, Hostage Affairs, Qatari, Swiss, State Department, Central Bank, Doha International Airport, Getty, Defense, “ CNN Locations: United States, Iran, Tehran, Doha, South Korea, Qatar, Emad Sharqi, AFP, Washington, DC, Fort Belvoir , Virginia, PISA, Fort Belvoir

☆ Iran prisoner release: Five Americans back on US soil after release from Iranian detention
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Jennifer Hansler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Five Americans freed from Iranian detention this week returned to US soil early Tuesday following an initial stop in Doha, Qatar, two US officials told CNN. Yay Abram!”Then the freed American detainees stepped off the plane and onto US soil for the first time in more than five years and into the arms of their loved ones, some of whom rushed forward to greet them, carrying small American flags. “We’re home,” Emad Shargi said after embracing his daughters, Hannah and Ariana, and stroking his wife Bahareh’s face. And I know a lot of you are going to maintain the fight to try to bring more Americans home,” he said. Namazi’s mother, Effie Namazi, and Tahbaz’s wife, Vida Tahbaz, who had been previously unable to leave Iran, were also on the flight from Iran to Doha, the official said Monday.

Persons: Emad, Morad, Siamak, Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, Iran Abram Paley, “, Roger ! Yay Abram, ”, Emad Shargi, Hannah, Ariana, Bahareh’s, other’s, Carstens, Effie Namazi, Vida Tahbaz, Joe Biden, Biden Organizations: CNN — Five, CNN, Fort Belvoir’s Davison Army, Department of Defense, Hostage Affairs, Qatari, Washington, Monday, Biden Locations: Doha, Qatar, Fort, PISA, United States, Iran, Tehran, DC, American

☆ Five Americans freed from Iran arrive back in the U.S. after prisoner swap
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Patrick Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Family members embrace freed American Emad Shargi after he and four fellow detainees were released in a prisoner swap deal between U.S and Iran, and arrived at Davison Army Airfield at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, U.S., September 19, 2023. Five Americans who were released after being wrongfully imprisoned in Iran for years have arrived back on U.S. soil. A plane carrying the five Americans and two of their relatives touched down at a military airfield near Washington, D.C. early Tuesday. NBC News first reported on the prisoner swap negotiations in February. He was arrested in 2015 on charges of espionage and convicted in a trial that lasted a few hours.

Persons: American Emad, Mahsa, Siamak Namazi, Emad Shargi, Morad Tahbaz Organizations: Davison Army, Five, NBC News Locations: American, U.S, Iran, Fort Belvoir , Virginia, Washington ,, Gulf, Qatar, Tehran, Iranian

☆ Exclusive: Qatar PM touts ‘better environment’ after US-Iran prisoner deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( David Shortell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

“We were so proud to see that Qatar helped in bringing those people back to their families,” Al-Thani told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in an exclusive interview. “I hope both countries are believing that this will lead to a better environment to go for an entire agreement on the nuclear issue, and any other outstanding issue,” he said. The Qatar-mediated prisoner-release deal came amid a significant dialing back of tensions between Iran and the US in recent months. Attacks by Iran and its proxies on US interests in the Middle East have almost ceased, and Iran’s oil exports have risen despite Western sanctions on its oil industry. Meanwhile, Iran’s uranium enrichment under its nuclear program has reportedly slowed.

Persons: Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, “, ”, Thani, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Emad, Morad, Siamak, Amanpour, Biden, Ebrahim Raisi, Donald Trump’s, Raisi, Joe Biden Organizations: CNN — Qatar, Qatari, CNN, Biden, UN, Assembly, Hall, Ukraine ” Locations: Iran, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al, Thani, Qatar, ” Al, Virginia, Doha, Al, New York, UN’s, Ukraine, United States, America

The deal removes a point of friction between the United States, which brands Tehran a sponsor of terrorism, and Iran, which calls Washington the "Great Satan". 'HUMANITARIAN ACTION'[1/9]Family members embrace freed American Emad Shargi after he and four fellow detainees were released in a prisoner swap deal between U.S and Iran, and arrived at Davison Army Airfield at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who was in New York for the annual U.N. General Assembly, called the swap a humanitarian action. Relations between the United States and Iran have been especially bitter since 2018 when then-President Donald Trump pulled out of a deal aimed at curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions and toughened U.S. sanctions. Washington suspects Iran's nuclear program may be aimed at developing nuclear arms, a charge Iran denies.

Persons: Babak Namazi, Siamak, Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, American Emad, Jonathan Ernst, Joe Biden, Ebrahim Raisi, Biden, Michael McCaul, Donald Trump, Iran's, Antony Blinken, Henry Rome of, Andrew Mills, Humeyra Pamuk, Parisa, Edmund Blair, Arshad Mohammed, Gareth Jones, Jon Boyle, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Doha DOHA, NEW, Stripes, Qatari, Davison Army, REUTERS, Rights, General Assembly, Democrat, House Foreign, U.S, Washington Institute for Near, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Qatar, Iran, Doha, United States, U.S, Fort Belvoir , Virginia, South Korea, Switzerland, Tehran, Washington, Gulf and U.S, Emad Sharqi, British, American, New York

Loved ones, some holding small American flags, enveloped them in hugs and exchanged greetings in English and Farsi, the main language of Iran. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said two of the Iranian prisoners will stay in the U.S. Meanwhile, Nour News, a website believed to be close to Iran’s security apparatus, said two of the Iranian prisoners were in Doha for the swap. In his statement, Biden demanded more information on what happened to Bob Levinson, an American who went missing years ago. The Biden administration also announced fresh sanctions on former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence.

Persons: Joe Biden, Siamak Namazi, ”, Babak, Baquer, “, Biden, Iran’s, Ebrahim Raisi, ” Raisi, — Siamak, Emad, Tahbaz —, Timmy Davis, Namazi, Effie Namazi, Vida Tahbaz, Nasser Kanaani, Nour, Mehrdad Ansari, Reza Sarhangpour Kafrani, Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell, ” Biden, Bob Levinson, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Neda, ___ Gambrell, Jo, Nasser Karimi, Amir Vahdat, Matthew Lee, Paul Haven, Aamer Madhani, Michelle Phillips, Eric Tucker, Farnoush Amiri Organizations: WASHINGTON, Republican, Democratic, United Nations General Assembly, U.S, South, Iranian Foreign Ministry, Nour News, Mideast, Social, Iranian Ministry of Intelligence, Embassy, Associated Press Locations: Iran, Fort Belvoir , Virginia, Tehran, Doha, Qatar, New York, America, Persian, U.S, Strait, Hormuz, United States, South Korea, Iranian, Korea, Islamic Republic, American, British, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Washington

☆ Iran-US prisoner swap: Who are the detainees being released?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Months later his ailing father, Baquer, was detained after returning to Iran to visit his jailed son. EMAD SHARGHIIn 2017 Sharghi and his wife moved to Iran from the United States. The five Iranians held in the United States are Mehrdad Moin-Ansari, Kambiz Attar-Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour-Kafrani, Amin Hassanzadeh and Kaveh Afrasiabi, according to Iranian officials. For years, Iran has demanded the release of Iranians detained in the United States. There are over a dozen Iranian prisoners held in the U.S. mainly for "breaching the U.S. sanctions on Iran", one Iranian judiciary source told Reuters.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Baquer, Baquer Namazi, EMAD SHARGHI, Sharghi, MORAD, Tahbaz, …, Mehrdad Moin, Ansari, Kambiz Attar, Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour, Amin Hassanzadeh, Kaveh, Parisa Hafezi, Samia Nakhoul, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Revolutionary Guards, U.S ., UNICEF, Saravan, British, Iran's, U.S, Thomson Locations: Rights DUBAI, United States, Iran, South Korea, U.S, Tehran, Iranian, American

☆ Iran Released Five American Prisoners
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Matthew Cullen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Five Americans who had been imprisoned in Iran left the country today after the U.S. negotiated their release, President Biden said. The agreement involved unfreezing $6 billion in Iranian oil revenue and dismissing federal charges against five Iranians. The Americans are returning to the U.S., but three of the Iranians declined to return to Iran, according to U.S. officials. The American prisoners had been jailed in Iran on unsubstantiated charges of spying, and some had been held for years in Evin Prison, one of the country’s most notorious detention centers. News of the arrangement has generated intense criticism from Republicans who say that releasing billions in oil revenue amounts to paying a ransom and that it could lead to the taking of more hostages.

Persons: Biden, Siamak, Emad, Morad, — Organizations: Biden, U.S Locations: Iran, Doha, Qatar, U.S

The US government has designated all five Americans as being wrongfully detained. The release of the Americans would bring to an end a years-long nightmare for those who had been detained. The agreement, which has already prompted criticism from Republicans, also involves the release of five Iranians in US custody. The overall contours of the release protest began to crystallize in Doha about seven months ago after years of indirect negotiations. The first tangible public steps under the deal took place about five weeks ago, when four of the Americans were transferred into house arrest.

Persons: Nasser Kanaani, Morad Tahbaz, Namazi, Trump, Baquer Namazi, Joe Biden, Biden Organizations: Washington CNN — Five, CNN, Monday, Biden, US Treasury Department Locations: Doha, Iran, Iranian, United States, Tehran, South Korea, Qatar, Switzerland, Washington, American, Evin

☆ U.S.-Iran detainee swap deal to go ahead on Monday, says Tehran
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A fourth U.S. citizen was also released into house arrest, while a fifth was already under house arrest. As a first step in the deal, Washington waived sanctions to allow the transfer of $6 billion in Iranian funds from South Korea to Qatar. The transfer of Iran's funds has drawn criticism from U.S. Republicans who say President Joe Biden, a Democrat, is in effect paying a ransom for U.S. citizens. Ties between Washington and Tehran have been boiling since Donald Trump, a Republican, pulled the U.S. out of a nuclear deal between Iran and global powers when he was president in 2018. Reaching another nuclear deal has gained little traction since then, as Biden prepares for the 2024 U.S. election.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Nasser Kanaani, Morad Tahbaz, Mehrdad Moin, Ansari, Kambiz Attar, Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour, Amin Hassanzadeh, Afrasiabi, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Biden, Elwely Elwelly, Hyonshee, Edmund Blair, Stephen Coates, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Iranian, REUTERS, Rights, Iran's Foreign Ministry, Reuters, Gulf . South Korea's Foreign, U.S, Republicans, Democrat, Republican, Thomson Locations: U.S, Rights DUBAI, Tehran, United States, Qatar, South Korea, Iran, Doha, Washington, Gulf . South, Emad Sharqi, British, Dubai, Seoul

☆ Biden takes a political hit but brings Americans home
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

After all, the United States does not do deals with its well-meaning friends to free hostages or wrongly detained Americans. There is no perfect deal to free imprisoned Americans and the agreement with Iran is especially divisive. In this way dealing with US enemies can be a sign of political strength rather than weakness. Criticism from the likes of former President Donald Trump and Pence is politicized in the context of their presidential campaigns – and ignores their own deals to free Americans. Moscow is subsequently currently driving a relentless bargain over the fate of imprisoned Americans Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.

Persons: Joe Biden’s, Mike Pence, Donald Trump, Pence, –, Trump, Wang, Kim Jong, Trump’s, Biden, Mike McCaul, Viktor Bout, Brittney Griner, Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, ”, Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan, foments, Neda Sharghi, Emad Sharghi, “, Paul Whelan’s, Morad, Namazi – Organizations: CNN, Washington, Biden, Trump, Texas, House Foreign Affairs, Wall Street, White, GOP, US Treasury Department Locations: Iran, United States, Russia, Venezuela, Qatar, China, North Korea, Tehran, Moscow

☆ How Iran and the US reached the prisoner swap deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Sept 18 (Reuters) - Iran and the U.S. were to swap five detainees each on Monday after Qatar mediated a deal between the arch foes that also unfroze $6 billion of Tehran's funds. The transfer of Iran's funds has drawn Republican criticism that President Joe Biden, a Democrat, is in effect paying ransom for U.S. citizens. WHY WERE IRAN'S FUNDS FROZEN IN SOUTH KOREA? He also reimposed harsh U.S. sanctions designed to choke off Iran's oil exports as part of a "maximum pressure" campaign on the Islamic Republic. Seoul, normally one of Iran’s largest oil customers, received a waiver in 2018 from the United States to continue purchases of Iranian oil for several months.

Persons: Joe Biden, Tehran's, Dado Ruvic, Siamak Namazi, Emad Shargi, Morad Tahbaz, Mehrdad Moin, Ansari, Kambiz Attar, Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour, Amin Hassanzadeh, Kaveh, Donald Trump, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Khamenei, Parisa Hafezi, William Maclean Organizations: Qatar, Reuters, Iranian Foreign, Democrat, Doha, U.S, Iranian, REUTERS, WHO, United Nations, KOREA, Washington, U.S ., Islamic, Thomson Locations: Iran, U.S, Qatar, Doha, Tehran, Qatar's, United States, Iranian, Lebanon, Israel's, Washington, Islamic Republic, Seoul, IRAN

☆ What we know about 3 of the Americans who were released from Iranian detention
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Shawna Mizelle | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Two additional Americans in the deal have not yet been publicly identified. His father, Baquer, was also imprisoned in 2016 but was released in order to receive medical treatment in October 2022. Tahbaz is a US, UK and Iranian citizen who was arrested on allegations of espionage while on a trip to Iran. He spent eight months in jail and was released on bail but had a travel ban. In November 2020, he was sentenced to 10 years in jail by a Revolutionary Court for espionage charges.

Persons: Emad, Morad, Siamak Namazi, ” Namazi, Baquer, Tahbaz’s, Tara, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, ”, ” Tara Tahbaz, Kavous Seyed, Shargi, Hannah Sharghi, Sharghi, “, Tahbaz Organizations: Washington CNN, UN, Doha International Airport, AFP, Getty Images, Getty, Human Rights, Wildlife Heritage –, Wildlife Heritage Foundation, CNN, Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation, Revolutionary, US State Department Locations: Iran, South Korea, Qatar, Dubai, Doha, AFP, Tahbaz, US

☆ Biden: Today 'five innocent Americans' imprisoned in Iran are coming home
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Emma Kinery | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

US citizens Siamak Namazi (R-back), Emad Sharqi (L) and Morad Tahbaz (C) disembark from a Qatari jet upon their arrival at the Doha International Airport in Doha on September 18, 2023. President Joe Biden celebrated the release of five American prisoners from Iran on Monday. "Today, five innocent Americans who were imprisoned in Iran are finally coming home," Biden said in a statement. South Korea owed Iran, but had not paid, the money for oil purchased before the U.S. imposed sanctions. "For almost eight years I have been dreaming of this day," Namazi, who was imprisoned in 2015, said in a statement following his release.

Persons: Siamak, Morad, Joe Biden, Biden, Ebrahim Raisi, Emad Sharghi, Namazi Organizations: Doha International Airport, United Nations General Assembly Locations: Emad Sharqi, Doha, Iran, New York, South Korea, Qatar, United States, U.S

☆ Iran's Raisi: five US citizens detained in Iran 'in full health'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi meets with Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa (not pictured) during his official visit at the State House in Harare, Zimbabwe, on July 13, 2023. Iran's Presidency/Mohammad Javad Ostad/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Five U.S. citizens detained in Iran, who are expected to be swapped for five Iranians imprisoned in the United States as early as next week, are "in full health," Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said in a television interview on Tuesday. One source familiar with the talks has previously said the Swiss embassy, which represents U.S. interests in Iran, had visited the five Americans and said they were in good health. While Raisi appeared to acknowledge the $6 billion may only be used for humanitarian purposes, he said Iran would decide how the money would be spent. "This money belongs to the Iranian people, the Iranian government, so the Islamic Republic of Iran will decide what to do with this money," Raisi said in the interview, speaking through an Iranian government translator.

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi, Emmerson Mnangagwa, Mohammad Javad Ostad, Raisi, Lester Holt, Morad Tahbaz, Arshad Mohammed, Samia Nakhoul, Timothy Gardner Organizations: State House, Iran's, West Asia News Agency, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, U.S, NBC Nightly, U.S ., British, NBC, U.S . State Department, Thomson Locations: Harare, Zimbabwe, Iran, United States, Tehran, U.S, Emad Sharqi, South Korean, Washington, Qatar, Swiss, Islamic Republic of Iran, South Korea, Dubai

Iran's Presidency/Mohammad Javad Ostad/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Five U.S. citizens detained in Iran who are expected to be swapped for five Iranians imprisoned in the United States as early as next week are "in full health," Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Tuesday. The United States said it will have "oversight" on how and when the funds will be spent. IRNA, citing Iran's mission to the United Nations, said "some of the freed Iranians will remain in the United States while others will return ... "The arrangements have been done and the final action of swapping the prisoners should be finalized in the due time," Raisi told NBC, according to excerpts released by the network. "This money belongs to the Iranian people, the Iranian government, so the Islamic Republic of Iran will decide what to do with this money," Raisi said in the interview, speaking through an Iranian government translator.

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi, Emmerson Mnangagwa, Mohammad Javad Ostad, Matthew Miller, Raisi, Lester Holt, Siamak, Morad Tahbaz, Mehrdad Moin, Ansari, Kambiz Attar, Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour, Amin Hassanzadeh, Kaveh, IRNA, John Kirby, Arshad Mohammed, Rami Ayyub, Daphne Psaledakis, Parisa Hafezi, Timothy Gardner, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: State House, Iran's, West Asia News Agency, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, U.S, United, Department, NBC Nightly, U.S ., British, U.S . State Department, United Nations, White House, MSNBC, NBC, Thomson Locations: Harare, Zimbabwe, Iran, United States, South Korean, Washington, Tehran, U.S, Emad Sharqi, Qatar, Islamic Republic of Iran, Dubai

☆ Iran prisoners: Biden admin takes step advancing deal to free Americans held in Iran by issuing waiver for transfer of restricted Iranian funds to Qatar
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Jennifer Hansler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The process to bring the Americans home began to move forward in mid-August with the release of four Americans into house arrest. “The transfer requires the involvement of financial institutions from Germany, Ireland, Qatar, the ROK, and Switzerland,” he wrote. The waiver, which Blinken approved on Friday, will allow those institutions to transfer the money to the accounts in Qatar without worry of invoking US sanctions. Namazi, Tahbaz, and Shargi have all been detained in Iran for years. CNN reported on those details following the release of Namazi, Tahbaz, Shargi and a fourth American into house arrest in mid-August.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, Antony Blinken, ”, Blinken, Morad, Emad Shargi, we’ve, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, US State Department, CNN –, ROK, Associated Press Locations: Qatar, Iran, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland, United States, American, Washington, Tehran

☆ Iran, US on verge of prisoner swap under Qatar-mediated deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Reuters pieced together this account of previously unreported details about the extent of Qatari mediation of the secret talks, how the deal unfolded and the expediency that motivated both parties to clinch the prisoner swap deal. 'You can build trust'The U.S. administration has not commented on the timing of the funds transfer. Ties between the U.S. and Iran have been at boiling point since Donald Trump quit a nuclear deal with Iran as U.S. president in 2018. Reaching another nuclear deal has gained little traction since then, as President Joe Biden prepares for the 2024 U.S. election. Then president Trump in 2018 reimposed the sanctions when he pulled Washington out of a deal under which Iran had restricted its nuclear program.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, hasn't, Jin, Washington, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Trump, Iran Robert Malley, Abram Paley, Ali Bagheri Kani, Mehdi Safari, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Khulaifi, Malley, Paley, Kani, Al Khulaifi Organizations: Capitol, Iranian, National, Washington D.C, U.S, Reuters, British, Islamic, Washington, Doha, State Department, Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The State Department, Democrat, Qatari, Iran, The Central Bank of, U.S ., State, Foreign Ministry Locations: Iranian, Washington, United States, Qatar, Iran, U.S, Tehran's, Emad Sharqi, Islamic Republic, Western, Gulf, South Korea, Switzerland, Tehran, Seoul, Doha, The Central Bank of Iran

"Iran initially wanted direct access to the funds but in the end agreed to having access via Qatar," said a senior diplomat. Reuters pieced together this account of previously unreported details about the extent of Qatari mediation of the secret talks, how the deal unfolded and the expediency that motivated both parties to clinch the prisoner swap deal. Ties between the U.S. and Iran have been at boiling point since Donald Trump quit a nuclear deal with Iran as U.S. president in 2018. Reaching another nuclear deal has gained little traction since then, as President Joe Biden prepares for the 2024 U.S. election. Then president Trump in 2018 reimposed the sanctions when he pulled Washington out of a deal under which Iran had restricted its nuclear program.

Persons: Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al Khulaifi, Iran Dr, Ali Bagheri, Antony Blinken, Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, hasn’t, Jin, Washington, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Iran’s, Trump, Iran Robert Malley, Abram Paley, Ali Bagheri Kani, Mehdi Safari, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Khulaifi, Malley, Paley, Kani, Al Khulaifi, Laila Bassam, Samia Nakhoul, William Maclean Organizations: Regional Affairs, Political Affairs, Qatar News Agency, Handout, REUTERS Acquire, Qatar, Qatar DUBAI, U.S, Reuters, British, Islamic, Washington, Doha, Iranian, State Department, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The State Department, Democrat, Qatari, TRANSIT QATAR, Iran, The Central Bank of, U.S ., State, Foreign Ministry, Thomson Locations: Islamic Republic, Iran, Tehran, Qatar Gulf, DOHA, Qatar, U.S, Tehran’s, Emad Sharqi, Western, Gulf, South Korea, Washington, Switzerland, Seoul, Doha, Iranian, The Central Bank of Iran, Beirut

☆ Iran, US on Verge of Prisoner Swap Under Qatar-Mediated Deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +9 min

Persons: Parisa Hafezi, Andrew Mills, Antony Blinken, Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, hasn’t, Jin, Washington, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, Blinken, Iran’s, Trump, Iran Robert Malley, Abram Paley, Ali Bagheri Kani, Mehdi Safari, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Khulaifi, Malley, Paley, Kani, Al Khulaifi, Laila Bassam, Samia Nakhoul, William Maclean Organizations: Reuters, U.S, British, Islamic, Washington, Doha, Iranian, State Department, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The State Department, Democrat, Qatari, TRANSIT QATAR, Iran, The Central Bank of, U.S ., State, Foreign Ministry Locations: Andrew Mills DUBAI, DOHA, Qatar, Iran, U.S, Tehran’s, Emad Sharqi, Islamic Republic, Western, Gulf, South Korea, Washington, Switzerland, Tehran, Seoul, Doha, Iranian, The Central Bank of Iran, Beirut

☆ Opinion | How Much Is an American Hostage Worth?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The Biden administration agreed last week to a deal with Iran that, if all goes according to plan, paves the way for five American citizens to come home after long imprisonments on spurious charges. It’s likely that the agreement is also tied to efforts to resume nuclear talks with Iran, though the administration insists the nuclear and hostage files remain separate. And it is not a sign of weakness when democratic governments pay what seem like exorbitant amounts to free hostages. In Israel, Ariel Sharon and Benjamin Netanyahu each released hundreds of Arab prisoners to obtain the release of a single living Israeli hostage. There is also Shahab Dalili, a U.S. permanent resident whose wife and sons are Americans and who has been imprisoned in Tehran since 2016.

Persons: Morad Tahbaz, Siamak Namazi, Ariel Sharon, Benjamin Netanyahu, Shahab Dalili, Paul Rusesabagina Organizations: Biden, Tehran, U.S . Embassy, Rwanda Locations: Iran, South Korea, U.S, Tehran, It’s, Israel, “

Befitting the relationship, the path has been thorny, according to accounts shared with CNN by several sources familiar with the talks. The United States and Iran don’t have diplomatic relations, and public overtures by Washington to engage directly with Tehran on the matter were rebuffed. Swiss diplomats serve as the protecting power – the eyes and ears on the ground – for the US in Iran. Sources said that bringing the Americans back home had been a priority from the outset of President Joe Biden’s tenure. Now, US officials say the work continues, but they are cautiously optimistic that the five could be coming home.

Persons: “, Antony Blinken, –, Adrienne Watson, Trump, Biden, Joe Biden’s, Morad, Shargi –, Namazi, Obama, ” Blinken Organizations: Washington CNN, CNN, Washington, National Security, White, US Treasury, State Department, US Treasury Department, Biden Locations: Iran, Doha, –, Washington, Tehran, United States, East, Europe, Qatar, Oman, United Kingdom, Switzerland, American, Swiss, South Korea

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