Iran confirms prisoner swap with US
Tehran: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif confirmed a prisoner swap deal between the United States and the Islamic republic.
“Glad that Professor Massoud Soleimani and Mr. Xiyue Wang will be joining their families shortly,” Zarif tweeted on Saturday.
“Many thanks to all engaged, particularly the Swiss government,” he said.
Xiyue Wang, a Chinese-born US citizen who was held in Iran over spying charges, is returning to the United States, US President Donald Trump said Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.
Wang was sentenced by the Iranian court to 10 years in prison in 2017 over espionage charges.
Meanwhile, the Iranian citizen Soleimani who had been freed by the US authorities after one year in detention, is also on his way back to Tehran, official IRNA news agency reported.
Soleimani, who works in stem cell research, haematology and regenerative medicine, was arrested by the US authorities last year for allegedly violating trade sanctions by trying to have biological material brought to Iran.
Both Wang and Soleimani denied the charges.
Switzerland, which represents US diplomatic interests in Iran, facilitated the swap.