He vowed to keep working until the prisoners were reunited with their families.
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The first four Americans released were Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, former U.S. Marine Amir Hekmati, pastor Saeed Abedini and Nosratollah Khosravi, whose name had not been previously made public.
Jason Rezaian, who was born in San Francisco, is one of three Americans flying home Sunday. The U.S.is returning seven Iranians accused or convicted of violating economic sanctions against Iran. The Obama administration and its allies countered that the diplomatic breakthrough illustrated that the president’s policy of engagement with Iran on nuclear issues had begun to produce broader benefits.
Secretary of State John F. Kerry flew from London to Vienna in the early afternoon local time.
Iran state television has reported that the government has released several dual-national prisoners.
He’s been held in custody since August 2011, when the 2001 Flint Central High School graduate and U.S. Marine Corps veteran was accused of spying and sentenced to death. The nuclear deal is opposed by all of the Republican candidates vying to succeed Obama as president in an election in November.
Abedini has been held by Iranian authorities since 2012.
On Monday, the U.S.is scheduled to announce that sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program will end.
Swiss Foreign Ministry spokesman Jean-Marc Crevoisier confirmed that the jet that touched down after dark Sunday was the one with the Americans on board. “But put together they point to at least a trend”.
“The nuclear deal is an opportunity that we should use to develop the country, improve the welfare of the nation, and create stability and security in the region”, Rouhani said. “This is an example of it”.
US officials would not immediately confirm the announcement, but they had indicated a prisoner deal would be separate from Saturday’s expected “implementation” of the landmark nuclear agreement.
“In terms of the global backdrop, Iran’s reintegration could hardly come at a worse time”, an October report by the Dubai-based bank Emirates NBD said.
“Think about the logic that that creates”, Obama said. The Iranians have always denied knowing his location.
The sentence was later overturned, and Hekmati was later charged with cooperating with and collaborating with the US government and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Iran was seeking a number of detained Iranians in exchange for the Americans.
As part of the prisoner swap, the U.S. offered clemency to seven Iranians, six of whom are dual U.S.-Iranian citizens, who had been convicted or were awaiting trial in the U.S., said the official. They spoke about the prisoner exchange on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly. “We do not envision this type of humanitarian reciprocal release replicated in the future. Our determination was that it was a better decision to get our people home”. A fifth American detained in Iran, Matthew Trevithick, was released in a move unrelated to the swap, USA officials said.
“Considering how little value the Ministry of Intelligence places on my Iranian citizenship and passport, I, too, place little value on them and inform you, effectively that I formally renounce my Iranian citizenship and passport”.
Iraq has welcomed the implementation of a historic nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, saying it will have a positive impact across the Middle East.
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The deal reached last summer with the U.S., France, Britain, Germany, Russia and China will lift crippling economic sanctions on Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear program.
