Five American citizens who were held for years in Iran have been released in a prison swap between the US and Iran, along with $6 billion frozen Iran funds.
The Americans who were held under terrible conditions were freed and allowed to fly out of the country, the result of months of secret negotiations, a senior Biden administration official said.
The former prisoners flew in a Qatari government airplane to Doha before continuing to Washington.
Deemed wrongfully imprisoned by the U.S., they were moved from the notorious Evin prison in Tehran last month to house arrest as the first step in the complicated deal.
Among the five was Siamek Namazi, 51, the longest held at eight years.
Others who were freed include Emad Shargi, 59, a businessman like Namazi, and Morad Tahbaz, 67, an environmentalist. The two others, at least one of whom is a woman, have declined to be publicly identified.
After releasing the $6 billion, the United States has given conditions.
Iran will be allowed to use the money only for humanitarian needs, U.S. officials said. The transactions will be monitored, and if Tehran uses the money for terrorism or military purposes, the U.S. will re-freeze funds, the officials said.
The Biden administration has faced criticisms from the Republicans with many suggesting that the money release is encouraging hostage-taking.
The Biden administration has continued imposing sanctions on Iran and individual officials, including a batch last week.
