Iran releases 3 European prisoners on humanitarian grounds: Official

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
3 Jun 2023 09:17

A spokesperson for the Belgian government says the Omani-mediated release was in exchange for that of Iranian official Assadollah Assadi.

Kazem Gharibabadi, the secretary of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights and the Judiciary chief’s deputy for international affairs (IRNA)

Iran has released a Danish prisoner and two Austrian-Iranians for humanitarian reasons, announced Kazem Gharibabadi, the secretary of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights and the Judiciary chief’s deputy for international affairs, on Friday.

Gharibabadi said the Iranian nationals were Masoud Mosaheb and Kamran Ghaderi, which have completed most of their terms, 4.5 and 7.5 years, respectively.

The senior Iranian official, however, did not name the Danish individual.

As per Iranian media, Mosaheb and Kamran were convicted of espionage and sentenced to 10 years in jail.

Earlier on Friday, a spokesperson for the Belgian government pointed out that the Omani-mediated release was in exchange for that of Iranian official Assadollah Assadi, as part of a prisoner swap deal in which Tehran also released Belgian Olivier Vandecasteele last week.

In a statement, the Belgian government indicated the Danish national was arrested in Iran in November 2022, while Ghaderi and Mosaheb were arrested in 2016 and 2019, respectively.

The Belgian government valued Oman for facilitating the exchange and indicated that its authorities will arrange their transportation to Belgium via Oman.