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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Robert Tait in Washington

Freed American decries Iran’s ‘vile path to profit’ of holding foreigners hostage

Siamak Namazi and other former detainees arrive at the Doha international airport in Qatar on 18 September 2023.
Siamak Namazi and other former detainees arrive at the Doha international airport in Qatar on 18 September 2023. Photograph: Karim Jaafar/AFP/Getty Images

An American citizen freed in a complex exchange deal after being imprisoned for nearly eight years in Iran has urged the Biden administration to launch a “gamechanging global endeavour” to end the Islamic regime’s longstanding practice of holding foreign nationals hostage.

Siamak Namazi, 51, was one of five US citizens released on Monday under the terms of an agreement that saw five Iranians facing charges in the United States granted clemency and Iran being given access to $6bn of previously frozen oil revenues.

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