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France 24
France 24
Politics
FRANCE 24

Belgian aid worker, Iranian diplomat freed in prisoner exchange

Olivier Vandecasteele Assadollah Assadi Iran Prison Belgium De Croo Tehran Terrorism
Freed Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele (L) embraces family members as he disembarks an aircraft on the tarmac upon his return to Belgium after almost 15 months of captivity in Iran, at Melsbroek military airport north of Brussels, on May 26, 2023. © Didier Lebrun, AFP

Iran freed Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele after almost 15 months in custody on Friday, in a prisoner exchange for Iranian diplomat Assadollah Assadi, who had been convicted of terrorism. Vandecasteele landed in Belgium late Friday after being repatriated in a military aircraft, according to images broadcast on television.

The 42-year-old French-speaking Belgian was greeted by his parents, sister and other family members on the tarmac of the Melsbroek military base near Brussels. 

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