Iran Frees 5 US Citizens Over Oil Deal

President of the United States Of America Joe Biden celebrated the release of five Americans who were wrongly imprisoned in Iran for several years.

The five American who were detained wrongfully were finally freed as part of a wider deal that includes the US unfreezing $6 billion in Iranian funds.

They are being flown on a Qatari government jet to Doha. Two relatives of the detainees were also on board, along with the Qatari ambassador to Tehran.

A statement by the US President read, "Today, five innocent Americans who were imprisoned in Iran are finally coming home. I am grateful to our partners at home and abroad for their tireless efforts to help us achieve this outcome, including the Governments of Qatar, Oman, Switzerland, and South Korea."

The release of the Americans brought an end to the years-long nightmare. The detained US citizens were identified as Emad Shargi, Morad Tahbaz, and Siamak Namazi. Namazi had been detained since 2015. However, the identity of the other two Americans have not been publicly known.

According to a senior official of the Biden administration, Siamak Namazi's mother Effie Namazi and Morad Tahbaz's wife Vida Tahbaz who were unable to leave Iran have also flown to Doha from Iran.

Meanwhile, a senior Biden administration official said, "The deal to free the Americans from Iranian detention "has not changed our relationship with Iran in any way."

As per the deal, $6 billion in Iranian funds that had been held in restricted accounts in South Korea was transferred to restricted accounts in banks in Qatar.

Reportedly, the funds came from oil sales that were allowed and placed into accounts set up under the Trump administration. Biden administration officials said the funds transferred to the accounts in Qatar will only be able to be used by Iran for humanitarian purchases and it would be closely monitored by the US Treasury Department.

Namazi is a dual Iranian-US citizen. His father, Baquer Namazi, was released in order to receive medical treatment in October 2022 after more than six years in detention in Iran.

Shargi, a businessman, and Tahbaz, an environmentalist, were first arrested in 2018. They too are dual Iranian-US citizens.

Earlier in March, Namazi made an emotional plea to Biden to put the "liberty of innocent Americans above politics" and ramp up efforts to secure his release.

Namazi's family, as well as the Shargi and Tahbaz families, had made urgent calls for the Biden administration to intensify efforts to bring their loved ones home.