Washington Post Reporter Jason Rezaian, 3 Other U.S. Prisoners Freed by Iran

Iran has freed Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian and three other prisoners from the United States, Iran’s FARS news agency reported Saturday.

FARS named the three other prisoners as Amir Hekmati, Saeed Abedini and Nosratollah Khosrawi, who had all been jailed in Iran on various charges in recent years.

The release comes as part of a prisoner swap for seven Iranians being held by the United States, according to FARS. In addition, FARS said the release also means 14 Iranian nationals wanted by the U.S. would no longer be sought by Interpol.

“Based on an approval of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) and the general interests of the Islamic Republic, four Iranian prisoners with dual-nationality were freed today within the framework of a prisoner swap deal,” FARS quoted the office of the Tehran prosecutor as saying.

The Associated Press says both U.S. and Iranian officials have confirmed the swap. The Americans were to be flown from Iran to Switzerland on a Swiss plane and then be brought to a U.S. military base in Germany for medical treatment. An American student detained in Iran, identified as Matthew Trevithnick, was also released independent of the prisoner swap.

“We couldn’t be happier to hear the news that Jason Rezaian has been released from Evin Prison. Once we receive more details and can confirm Jason has safely left Iran, we will have more to share,” Frederick J. Ryan, Jr., publisher of The Washington Post said in a statement.

Earlier, the Washington Post released a statement saying, “while we are hopeful, we have not received any official word of Jason’s release.” Rezaian’s brother, Ali Rezaian also said he did not have any direct confirmation that Jason had been released.

“Cautious optimism that my constituent Jason Rezaian +3 other Americans will be out of Iran and free in hours ahead,” Rep. Jared Huffman (R-Calif) wrote on Twitter. Huffman represents California’s second congressional district including Marin County, where Rezaian was born.

Rezaian, 39, was detained by Iran in 2014 on charges of espionage and other crimes, according to the Washington Post. He was tried in Iran Revolutionary Court after being charged with unspecified offenses in December 2014 and sentenced to prison for an unknown time. Some of the charges against Rezaian included “collaborating with hostile governments” and “propaganda agains the establishment.”

Both the Washington Post and Rezaian denied the accusations. At the time, Rezaian was the Post’s bureau chief in Tehran.

Hekmati, a former marine was detained in 2011 and accused of espionage. According to CNN, he was sentenced to death but that punishment was overturned and he was sentenced to ten years in prison. Saeed Abedini, an Iran native who converted to Christianity, was sentenced in 2012 to eight years in prison on charges of attempting to undermine the Iranian government. The details of Khosrawi’s case had not been publicized earlier, according to reports.

The announcement of the release comes on the day when the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, announced that Iran has taken all the necessary steps, which included scaling back its nuclear activities, in compliance with the nuclear deal reached in July 2015 with six world powers to start the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Following the certification from the IAEA, President Barack Obama signed executive orders lifting economic sanctions on Iran as part of the international agreement. 

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was in Vienna Saturday for talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif over the deal.