Iran has confirmed the release of American-Iranian dual nationals under a swap deal of releasing five each prisoner with the US, as well as unblocking Tehran’s over $10 billion frozen assets in South Korea and Iraq.
In the first reaction from Iran to the release of American-Iranian dual nationals, the country’s UN delegation confirmed the news to state-run news agency IRNA.
Iran’s representative to the world body told the news agency that the dual nationals were released from high-security Evin Prison “within the framework of an agreement mediated by a third party” so that the two sides swap five prisoners in question based on forgiveness.
He stopped short of mentioning the name of the country that mediated the prisoner exchange between Tehran and Washington, but sources say it was Qatar.
The report further said the agreement requires the US to facilitate the release of Iran’s frozen assets in South Korea, which will be transferred to Qatar and used for humanitarian purposes.
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Detailing the agreement, the report said Iran and the US agreed to exchange prisoners and unlock more than $10 billion in frozen Iranian assets in South Korea and Iraq.
The process of releasing a certain amount of Iranian frozen funds in one of the European banks has also begun, the IRNA report stated, adding that the funds in South Korea will be converted to euro.
Also, five Iranian prisoners in the US and five American prisoners will be swapped under the deal.
The prisoners have been transferred to a place other than the prison, but the exchange will not take place until the released funds are deposited into Iranian accounts.
