DUBAI: Iran is ready for a full prisoner exchange with the United States, Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei was quoted as saying by Khabaronline news website on Sunday, adding that Washington has yet to respond to Iran’s call on a prisoner swap.
“We are ready to exchange Iranian and American prisoners and we are prepared to discuss this issue but Americans have not responded yet,” Rabiei said, according to Khabaronline.
“We are worried about the safety and health of Iranians in jail ... We hold America responsible for Iranians’ safety amid the new coronavirus outbreak,” Khabaronline quoted Rabiei as saying. In a rare act of cooperation between two longtime foes, the United States and Iran swapped prisoners in 2019 — American graduate student Xiyue Wang, detained for three years on spying charges, and imprisoned Iranian stem-cell researcher Massoud Soleimani, accused of sanction violations.
Tehran and Washington have grown more hostile toward each other since 2018 when President Donald Trump exited Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with major powers and re-imposed sanctions on Tehran that has crippled its economy.
“There is no need for a third country to mediate between Iran and America for the prisoner exchange,” Rabiei said, according to Khabaronline.
Three Iranian officials told Reuters last week that a prisoner swap between the two countries is in the works. Michael White, a US navy veteran who has been detained in Iran since 2018, is a likely candidate to be swapped. He was released from prison in mid-March on medical furlough but remains in Iran.
The United States is set to deport Iranian professor Sirous Asgari, who was acquitted of stealing trade secrets, once he receives medical clearance to leave, US and Iranian officials said on Tuesday.
Iran ready to swap prisoners with US without preconditions
https://arab.news/rwcyw
Iran ready to swap prisoners with US without preconditions
- The United States is set to deport Iranian professor Sirous Asgari, who was acquitted of stealing trade secrets
- Tehran and Washington have grown more hostile toward each other since 2018 when President Donald Trump exited Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal
Israeli military kills Palestinian teenager in occupied West Bank
- Mayor of Al-Mughayyir says army raided the village when people began to exit mosques after Friday prayers
- Israeli settlers in the West Bank also serve in the army, and sometimes carry their weapons with them when off duty
- Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967
AL-MUGHAYYIR: Israeli forces killed a 14-year-old Palestinian in the occupied West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir on Friday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said, while the military said soldiers had responded to stone throwing.
The Ramallah-based Health Ministry announced the death of 14-year-old Mohammed Al-Nassan by Israeli fire in Al-Mughayyir in a statement on Friday.
Shortly after, Israel’s military said its forces had come to the village after Palestinians “hurled stones toward Israelis, set tires on fire and blocked access routes to the area.”
FASTFACT
The Ramallah-based Health Ministry announced the death of 14-year-old Mohammed Al-Nassan by Israeli fire in Al-Mughayyir in a statement on Friday.
The military said dozens of Palestinians were throwing stones upon their arrival, including one who posed “an imminent threat.”
“The soldiers responded by firing warning shots into the air, followed by fire to eliminate the terrorist,” the military said, adding it had set up roadblocks in the area to search for another suspect.
Amin Abu Aliya, mayor of Al-Mughayyir, said that the army raided the village when people began to exit mosques after Friday prayers.
“This young man (Nassan) was exiting the mosque where he was praying with the people, the military vehicle stopped in front of the mosque, they opened the back door and started shooting at him directly,” Abu Aliya said.
Abu Aliya added that following the incident, the army introduced a curfew for the village, closing all shops and setting up a new checkpoint at the village’s entrance.
He pointed to the heavy military presence in his village in recent months, which he said often protected Israeli settlers who recently set up nearby outposts and took land from Al-Mughayyir farmers.
In September, a settler who the military said was an off-duty soldier shot and killed a 20-year-old who the army said had thrown stones in Al-Mughayyir.
Israeli settlers in the West Bank also serve in the army, and sometimes carry their weapons with them when off duty.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.
Violence there has soared since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that triggered the Gaza war and has not subsided despite the truce that came into effect in October.
Since October 2023, Israeli troops and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank, according to Health Ministry figures.
