By Callum Paton with Shaun Tandon in New York Doha, Qatar -- The United States and Iran on Monday swapped
Doha, Qatar — The United States and Iran on Monday swapped five prisoners each in one of the arch-foes’ first deals in years as Tehran gained access to $6 billion in frozen funds.
One of them praised Biden for ignoring the political backlash and taking the “incredibly difficult decisions” that freed them. Two of the Iranian detainees arrived in Qatar, Iranian media said. The other three released by the United States have opted to remain there or in a third country. The sanctions were imposed over alleged deceit in the disappearance of Bob Levinson, a former FBI agent who disappeared in Iran in mysterious circumstance and is presumed dead.
Besides Namazi, they include wildlife conservationist Morad Tahbaz, venture capitalist Emad Sharqi and two others who wished to remain anonymous. All were accused of spying or other crimes that they strongly reject.