DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran has placed five Iranian-American prisoners under house arrest, a US-based lawyer said Thursday, a move that comes as Tehran has indicated for months that a prisoner swap between it and Washington be possible. Iran did not immediately take note of the move.
The move comes amid months of heightened tensions between Iran and the US. A major American military buildup is currently underway in the Persian Gulf, with the possibility of it Armed US troops board and guard merchant ships passing through the crucial Strait of Hormuzwhich handles 20% of all oil traded.
It remains unclear whether the Iranian-American transfers reflect significant progress in a possible prisoner swap between the two countries. Iran has in recent months overstated progress in talks on a possible trade, likely brokered by Oman and Qatar.
The US in March called Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian’s comments that an exchange deal was imminent a “cruel lie”.
US-based attorney Jared Genser confirmed the move and identified three of the detainees as Siamak Namazi, Emad Shargi and Morad Tahbaz. Genser did not identify the fourth and fifth prisoners.
The US State Department declined immediate comment.
It remains unclear how many Iranian-American citizens are being held in Tehran, which does not recognize dual citizenship.
Jon Gambrell via Associated Press
The three released prisoners whose identities are known are Namazi, who was arrested in 2015 and later sentenced to 10 years in prison on internationally criticized espionage charges; Shargi, a venture capitalist, sentenced to 10 years in prison; and Tahbaz, a British-American conservationist of Iranian descent who was arrested in 2018 and also served a 10-year sentence.
Statements by US officials in recent months had suggested there could be a fourth prisoner in Iran, and an Iranian newspaper reported in August that there was a fifth prisoner, exposing the case while apparently being negotiated for a release became.
Iran, meanwhile, has said it seeks the release of Iranian prisoners held in the US
Iranian media have identified several detainees in the past whose cases were linked to violations of US export laws and restrictions on doing business with Iran.
Alleged violations include Venezuela’s transfer of funds and sale of dual-use equipment that the US claims could be used in Iran’s military and nuclear programs. Iran has enriched uranium and stored it as part of it ongoing nuclear program.
Iran also wants access to assets frozen abroad, specifically around $7 billion in Iranian assets tied up in South Korean banks. Already, Tehran seized a South Korean oil tanker in a dispute and threatened further retaliation in August.
“There is no way Iran will remain silent and we have many options that could harm the Koreans and we will definitely use them,” said Fadahossein Maleki, a member of Iran’s parliament who sits on the influential Committee on National Security and Foreign Affairs of Iran sits.
Iran and the US have a long history of prisoner swaps taking over the US Embassy in 1979 and hostage-taking after the Islamic Revolution. The most recent major exchange between the two countries came in 2016, when Iran reached an agreement with world powers to curb its nuclear program in exchange for an easing of sanctions.
Four American prisoners, including Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, flew home from Iran, and several Iranians in the United States gained their freedom. On the same day, the Obama administration flew $400 million in cash to Tehran.
Iran has received international criticism because of the targeted fight against dual citizenship in the face of tensions with the rest of the world. A United Nations panel has described “an emerging pattern of arbitrary deprivation of liberty of dual nationals”. The West accuses Iran of using foreign prisoners as bargaining chips in political negotiations, a claim Tehran denies.
Negotiations over a major prisoner swap stalled after then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the nuclear deal in 2018. From the following year, a series of attacks and ship seizures attributed to Iran increased tensions. While President Joe Biden took office with hopes of getting the deal back on track, Diplomatic negotiations on the agreement have been on hold for a year.
It remains unclear how a potential deal would affect Biden, who is now ordering rearmament in the Persian Gulf. In 2016, then-President Barack Obama drew scathing criticism from Republicans over this prisoner swap, even as he neared the end of his second term. Biden faces re-election in November 2024, possibly against Trump.
That troop surge, however, could shield Biden from criticism from the Persian Gulf Arab states, which rely on American security guarantees. The US is also negotiating with Saudi Arabia over possible diplomatic recognition of Israel, a deal that may include further guarantees of military support to Iran. And this despite the fact that Riyadh achieved a detente with Iran in March after years of tensions.
Also long-missing in Iran is retired FBI agent Robert Levinson, who disappeared on the Iranian island of Kish in 2007. A 2013 Associated Press investigation revealed that he had been sent on an unauthorized CIA mission. The US claims he was kidnapped by Iranian government agents. Iran has denied arresting Levinson or knowing his whereabouts.
He is believed to have died in Iranian custody. He would now be 75 years old.
Lee reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Isabel DeBre in Jerusalem and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran contributed to this report.
