The United States has escalated pressure on Iran’s leadership, formally designating the country a “state sponsor of wrongful detention” as tensions mount over its nuclear programme. In a statement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the move, accusing Tehran of using foreign nationals as political leverage. “For decades, Iran has continued to cruelly detain innocent Americans, as well as citizens of other nations, to use as political leverage against other states. This abhorrent practice must end,” he said.
Rubio traced the practice back to the aftermath of the 1979 revolution, when Ayatollah Khomeini consolidated power and endorsed the hostage-taking of US embassy staff. The new designation follows an executive order issued last autumn by President Donald Trump aimed at protecting US nationals from wrongful detention abroad, as well as the Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025 passed by Congress.
