„Ich glaube, dass die Bedeutung von Freiheit niemals so vollständig sein wird, dass wir alle, die zu Unrecht im Iran inhaftiert sind, wieder mit unseren Familien vereint sind“, sagte der britisch-iranische Staatsbürger am Montag auf einer Pressekonferenz in London Das berichtete die britische PA Media.
Die Freilassung von Zaghari-Ratcliffe und Anousheh Ashouri wurde von Premierminister Boris Johnson als „riesiger Erfolg“ für die britische Diplomatie angepriesen, nachdem er ein Problem gelöst hatte, das seit Jahren auf der nationalen Tagesordnung stand.
Die Freilassung in der vergangenen Woche fand statt, als die Weltmächte, einschließlich des Vereinigten Königreichs, kurz vor dem Abschluss der Gespräche zur Wiederbelebung des Abkommens von 2015 standen, das das Nuklearprogramm von Teheran eindämmte. Großbritannien zahlte dem Iran rund 520 Millionen Dollar, um eine 40 Jahre alte Schuld für die Freilassung zu begleichen.
Es war jedoch nur der Abschluss eines Kapitels in einer langen Geschichte von Gefangenen, die zu Verhandlungsobjekten in den politischen Querelen zwischen der Islamischen Republik und dem Westen geworden sind.
Die Westmächte haben jegliche Verbindungen zwischen den Freilassungen und den Atomgesprächen bestritten, aber ihr Zeitpunkt veranlasste einige Gegner der Vereinbarung, die Gefangenen als „Geiseln“ und die Transaktion als „Lösegeldzahlung“ zu bezeichnen.
Der frühere US-Außenminister Mike Pompeo, der unter der Regierung von Donald Trump diente, die sich aus dem Abkommen von 2015 zurückgezogen hatte, kritisierte die Zahlung des Vereinigten Königreichs an den Iran und nannte sie „Blutgeld“.
Teheran hat den Vorwurf wiederholt zurückgewiesen und erklärt, die Festnahmen erfolgten unter dem Vorwurf der „nationalen Sicherheit“ und „Spionage“. Der Iran erkennt die doppelte Staatsbürgerschaft nicht an.
Trotz der Leugnung von Verbindungen zu den Atomgesprächen haben die Aktivitäten rund um die Verhaftung und Freilassung von Iranern mit doppelter Staatsangehörigkeit in der Vergangenheit einen Hinweis darauf gegeben, wohin die Gespräche führen könnten.
Die Zahl der vom Iran festgenommenen Personen mit doppelter Staatsangehörigkeit war beispielsweise bis 2015, als das Abkommen unterzeichnet wurde, sprunghaft angestiegen.
Nicht alle Doppelbürger seien aus denselben Gründen vom Iran festgenommen worden, sagte Trita Parsi.
„Einige Leute, die schon früh in den JCPOA aufgenommen wurden, wurden tatsächlich absichtlich von Hardline-Elementen aufgenommen [within Iran] die sicherstellen wollten, dass das Potenzial des JCPOA, zu einer größeren Aufwärmung der Beziehungen zwischen den USA und dem Iran zu führen, nicht eintritt“, sagte er und bezog sich dabei auf den Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, wie das Abkommen von 2015 genannt wird.
Die Freilassung von Gefangenen von einer Seite werde jedoch normalerweise von irgendeiner Form des Austauschs begleitet, sei es ein Gefangenenaustausch oder eine Beilegung alter Streitigkeiten, sagte Parsi und fügte hinzu, dass iranische Gefangene in westlichen Ländern normalerweise diejenigen sind, die gegen die Sanktionen gegen die Islamisten verstoßen haben Republik.
„Die Iraner berücksichtigen diese [imprisonments] illegitim und betrachten dies im Wesentlichen als Geiselnahme durch den Westen”, sagte er.
Nach den Freilassungen im Jahr 2016 folgten weitere Festnahmen, darunter die des US-Bürgers Baquer Namazi, der nach Teheran flog, um bei der Befreiung seines Sohnes Siamak Namazi, ebenfalls US-Bürger, zu helfen.
Jason Razaian, ein ehemaliger Chef des Teheraner Büros der Washington Post, der zu den 2016 befreiten Gefangenen gehörte, sagte, die Frage der Gefangenen müsse in den Gesprächen mit dem Iran ganz nach vorne auf die Tagesordnung gerückt werden, „damit Sie nicht ihr Leben riskieren von unschuldigen Menschen.”
„Das habe ich sehr gut verstanden, als ich saß [in an Iranian prison) that that wasn’t going to happen; I was never going to be the number one priority,” he told CNN. “Let’s turn it around; let’s make it the number one priority.”
Parsi said plans for more releases may be underway.
The following are Americans held in Iran who are likely to come up in negotiations between the Biden administration and the Islamic Republic as nuclear talks progress:
- Emad Shargi: The Iranian American businessman was first arrested in 2018 while working for a technology investment company. Shargi spent eight months in jail and was released on bail but has a travel ban. In November 2020, he was sentenced to 10 years in jail by a Revolutionary Court for espionage charges. His family says he’s innocent.
- Siamak and Baquer Namazi: Siamak Namazi was arrested and detained in October 2015 and a year later was convicted of “collusion with an enemy state” — the United States — and sentenced to 10 years in prison. His elderly father, Baquer, was arrested and detained in February 2016 after being lured to Iran under the false premise that he would be able to see his son. Baquer was released from prison in 2018 on medical grounds, be he is banned from traveling. Their family says they are innocent.
- Morad Tahbaz: An Iranian American environmentalist who also holds British nationality, Tahbaz was arrested in 2018, and in 2019 was sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of “spying” and “collusion against Iran’s national security.” He was released from prison last week and later taken back to prison to fit an ankle tag. His family has denied the charges against him.
- Robert Levinson: A former FBI agent who disappeared in Iran more than a decade ago, Levinson became the longest held US citizen in history in 2016. Levinson traveled to Kish Island, Iran, in early March 2007, according to State Department officials, and was never publicly seen or heard from again. His family believes he is dead.
Additional reporting by Adam Pourahmadi, CNN
Other top Middle East news
Germany in talks with Qatar on long-term gas supplies to reduce Russian dependence
Germany and Qatar are negotiating a long-term energy partnership, government officials from both sides said Sunday, as Europe’s biggest economy seeks to become less dependent on Russian energy sources.
- Background: Qatar had previously said that neither Qatar nor any other single country has the capacity to replace Russian gas supplies to Europe in the event of disruption. With most of Qatari volumes locked into long-term contracts with mostly Asian buyers, the amount of divertable volumes that can be shipped to Europe is only 10-15%, the energy minister said last month.
- Why it matters: Russia is the largest supplier of gas to Germany, and German economy minister Robert Habeck has launched several initiatives to lessen his country’s energy dependence on Russia since it invaded its neighbor Ukraine.
Yemen Houthis attack Saudi energy facilities, refinery output hit
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group fired missiles and drones at Saudi energy and water desalination facilities, causing a temporary drop in output at a refinery but no casualties, the Saudi energy ministry on Sunday. In a separate statement, the foreign ministry said that the attack represented a direct threat to the security of oil supplies and that it won’t incur responsibility for any shortage of oil on the market as a result.
- Background: Saudi Arabia has struggled to extricate itself from the war in Yemen, which has left tens of thousands dead and millions facing starvation. Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia have also endangered the kingdom’s airports, oil facilities and caused some civilian deaths.
- Why it matters: Any further disruption to oil supplies could be a big problem for the global economy. The attacks could also complicate hopes of a UN-brokered truce during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which starts in April. It was unclear if both sides had agreed on the UN plans.
Syria’s Assad welcomed in the UAE, Washington ‘troubled’
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited the United Arab Emirates on Friday, in his first visit to an Arab state since the Syrian war first began in 2011. Assad met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, as well as Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. Washington said it was “profoundly disappointed and troubled” by the visit.
- Background: Arab states sidelined the Syrian president more than a decade ago, cutting off ties and suspending Syria’s membership from the Arab league after international outcry against what the UN described as “crimes against humanity and war crimes.”
- Why it matters: A number of Arab states are now taking a softer tone with the Syrian regime, carving out direct channels of communication in an effort to bring Assad back into the Arab fold — a phenomenon that anti-regime activists have strongly opposed. The UAE has been at the forefront of the efforts.
What’s trending
Saudi Arabia: #FancyDressFestival
The Saudi capital Riyadh hosted a public fancy dress event over the weekend as part of the Riyadh Season festival, with young men and women donning their favorite anime characters’ outfits in Riyadh City Boulevard, an entertainment hub. Winners of a competition for the best dressed were given cars as prizes.
Turkey: #NoOneCanPassDardanelles
Turks marked the 110th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign from the First World War with tributes to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish republic, who was a commander at Gallipoli. During the campaign, Allied powers tried to take control of the Dardanelles strait in order to establish a direct sea line to their ally the Russian Empire, and their failure to do so is marked in Turkey today as a victory. A hashtag about Ataturk was trending globally. Turkey’s strategic waterways have been on the global radar amid Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Regional: #Mothers_Day
Mother’s Day is celebrated on March 21 in most Arab countries. Originally a Western holiday, the story of its emergence in the Middle East goes back to the late Egyptian duo of journalist brothers Mostafa and Ali Amin, who in the 1950s called for the state to officially honor Egyptian mothers. Cairo formally announced the holiday in 1956, choosing to mark it on the first day of spring. Other Arab states then followed. Mother’s Day is celebrated by many countries around the world on May 9, though other nations mark it on different days of the year.
Photo of the day
