Iran has released an 85-year-old American citizen who was
detained in the country for seven years in order to seek medical treatment.
Baquer Namazi, who used to work with the United Nations International Children’s
Emergency Fund (UNICEF), will now be able to take treatment abroad, the UN
announced on Saturday.

Making the announcement was Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson of
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Dujarric said Guterres was
grateful that UN President Ebrahim Raisi had listened to the intergovernmental agency’s
request. The UN spokesperson expressed his pleasure at the release of Siamak
Namazi, Baquer’s son.

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Baquer Namazi and Siamak, father and son, were arrested and
sentenced to 10 years in prison on spying charges. The United States and the
United Nations have both called the charges trumped up. In 2018, Baquer Namazi
was granted medical furlough, but he was still not allowed to travel outside Iran.

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In October 2021, the senior Namazi went through a surgery to
clear a blockage in his artery, a medical threat that his family says was
life-threatening. Meanwhile, Siamak Namazi was stationed at the Evin prison in
Iran, a prison unpopular for being the site of the regime’s political
prisoners.

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Following Saturday’s development, UN said it will “continue to
engage with the Iranian authorities on a range of important issues, including the
regional situation, sustainable development and the promotion and protection of
human rights.” Baquer has spent six years in Iranian jail.

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Baquer Namazi’s lawyer Jared Genser said in a statement Saturday
said his client’s travel ban has been listed for the first time in seven years.
“For the first time in seven years, Siamak Namazi is at home with his parents
in Tehran.”