According to the Iranian news agency FARS, Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian and three other American inmates have been freed from imprisonment. The other three are Marine veteran Amir Hekmati, Nosratollah Khosrawi, and Christian pastor Saeed Abedini. All four are U.S.-Iranian dual citizens.
The four were swapped for the impending release of seven Iranian-Americans held in the United States on sanctions-related charges, FARS News reports. The U.S. will also urge Interpol to stop the prosecution of 14 Iranian nationals, according to FARS.
“Based on an approval of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) and the general interests of the Islamic Republic, four Iranian prisoners with dual-nationality were freed today within the framework of a prisoner swap deal,” the office of the Tehran prosecutor said, according to FARS.
Rezaian was arrested in July 2014 and later charged with espionage. He was convicted in October 2015.
The move comes as “implementation day” nears. Implementation day is the day on which western powers will lift sanctions on Iran since it has met the terms of last summer’s nuclear deal.
According to some reports, Siamak Namazi was released. FARS states that Namazi was not in fact released as his charges are financial, not political.