Former Iran detainees fear Americans held in Iranian prisons face heightened danger

Former Iran detainee Siamak Namazi says he's disquieted astir the fistful of Americans known to beryllium held wrong Iranian prisons arsenic the U.S. warfare successful Iran continues. 

"They are the easiest-to-grab punching container close present successful the hands of that rogue regime," helium said during a sheet treatment with "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan." 

"I deliberation this is simply a unsafe time," said Namazi. He added, "For a hostage oregon wrongfully detained national abroad, their biggest fearfulness is to beryllium forgotten, and this is simply a precise unsafe clip for them, with each that's going connected successful Washington's mind."

Namazi was detained successful Iran's notorious Evin situation successful 2015 aft astir 8 years of captivity, the longest-held American captive to beryllium released from Iran. The State Department determined that helium had been wrongfully detained.

Emad Shargi, who was held successful Iran for 5 years, recalled being successful the Evin situation successful October 2022, arsenic monolithic anti-government protests seized the country. Mahsa Amini, 22, had been arrested for allegedly wearing a hijab incorrectly and died successful constabulary custody. Authorities said she had a bosom attack, but her household said constabulary bushed her to death. 

Shargi said it's a "very uncomfortable situation" wrong the situation erstwhile there's unrest outside. 

"Whenever determination is an contented taking spot successful Iran, the walls of Evin are similar an amplifier," Shargi said. "So, erstwhile there's a ripple extracurricular successful the society, there's a tidal question inside." He recalled a occurrence wrong the prison, and an influx of caller prisoners related to the protests.

Shargi and Namazi were among five U.S. citizens who were freed successful 2023 successful a high-stakes, analyzable diplomatic woody brokered betwixt Iran and the Biden medication that included the transfer of $6 cardinal successful unfrozen Iranian lipid assets and the merchandise of 5 Iranians facing charges successful the U.S. 

At the time, a elder medication authoritative said the woody "does not alteration our narration with Iran successful immoderate way. Iran is an adversary and a authorities sponsor of terrorism."

Namazi said helium was "confident" if President Trump and his medication knew "there are Americans sitting successful Evin prison," they would "put that connected the agenda" amid the ongoing war. 

"I deliberation it's important that helium hears that determination are guiltless Americans being held similar we were — arsenic governmental pawns," said Namazi.

Shargi agreed, saying that helium couldn't "imagine if President Trump knew their names and knew these cases, they wouldn't beryllium 1 of the priorities."

"I personally deliberation that determination volition beryllium a clip soon due to the fact that each wars extremity with immoderate signifier of diplomacy," Shargi said. "So, I would implore President Trump to marque definite that portion of those negotiations that volition beryllium coming up is bringing our radical home." 

There are at slightest 4 Americans presently detained successful Iran. Two of them — Reza Valizadeh and Kamran Hekmati — person been designated by the U.S. authorities arsenic "wrongfully detained." Both are believed to beryllium held successful Evin prison. 

Namazi and Shargi spoke connected a sheet with Shargi's sister, Neda Sharghi, American hostage negotiator Roger Carstens and Margaret Brennan Thursday, arsenic Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the "largest onslaught bundle yet" was coming successful Iran. 

"Our American hostages, whether they're successful Iran oregon successful Venezuela, is that they ever go a hostage to different bigger, broader governmental issues," Neda Sharghi said. She said Americans "need to person our authorities to abstracted them from what's going connected and find a originative solution, similar we did to get Emad and Siamak home."

Carstens, who served arsenic the U.S. peculiar envoy for hostage affairs successful some the archetypal Trump and the Biden administrations, told Brennan helium doesn't cognize whether the detained Americans were raised during the negotiations with Iran led by peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner. 

He said that erstwhile helium was negotiating to bring Shargi and Namazi home, "we were precise cognizant of the transportation betwixt the atomic talks and that of the captive talks, due to the fact that if the atomic talks abruptly neglect precise horribly, the captive talks could beryllium pulled down with it." 

Carstens said the U.S. tried to support the ties betwixt the detainees and the atomic talks little intertwined, "to possibly conscionable person a dotted enactment betwixt the 2 issues, but not nexus them excessively tightly together."

"We were precise applicable astir however adjacent those issues got together, and we wanted the flexibility to abstracted them if we wanted to," Carstens said. 

He acknowledged that for the regime, the atomic contented and detainees are "much much joined adjacent together." But Carstens said that mightiness not beryllium the lawsuit for the Americans: "If Witkoff and Kushner were trying to articulate an extremity to a atomic issue, however adjacent volition they propulsion it together? Practically, it whitethorn not beryllium that close, depending connected wherever they consciousness they are with the Iranians."

In:

• Iran