Five Americans who were freed from Iranian detention as part of a wider deal with Tehran, landed in the United States, CNN has reported. They returned to US soil on early Tuesday, following an initial stop in Doha, Qatar, the media outlet reported citing two US officials.
Notably, all five Americans had been designated by the US as “wrongfully detained”, and were freed as part of a wider deal that includes the US unfreezing USD 6 billion in Iranian funds.
The five US citizens landed at Fort Belvoir’s Davison Army Airfield and received an emotional reunion with their families. They were seen greeting and hugging their family members after seeing their loved ones, after losing all hopes of returning to their homeland.
The release of the Americans brings to an end a years-long nightmare for those who had been detained. Three of those who are part of the deal — Emad Shargi, Morad Tahbaz and Siamak Namazi — had all been imprisoned for more than five years. Namazi had been detained since 2015. The identities of the other two Americans are not publicly known, according to CNN.
Under the deal, USD 6 billion in Iranian funds that had been held in restricted accounts in South Korea were transferred to restricted accounts in banks in Qatar. The funds came from oil sales that were allowed and placed into accounts set up under the Trump administration, CNN reported citing sources. However, Biden administration officials have stressed that the funds can be used by Iran only for humanitarian purchases and that each transaction will be monitored by the US Treasury Department.
