Barry Rosen: Guarantees Must Be Secured That Iran Stops Hostage-Taking as Part of Its Foreign Policy

The release of two Iranian-British dual nationals imprisoned in Iran and their return to Britain was welcomed by the US State Department. Former hostages who have been held in Iran also expressed satisfaction and called for efforts to free other detainees.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori left Tehran for Oman on Wednesday and then traveled to Britain. Both were reunited with their families at RAF Brize Norton military airbase. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was imprisoned in Iran for six years and Anoosheh Ashoori for five years.

A spokesperson for the US State Department, in a statement to the Persian service of Voice of America, welcomed the release of these two Iranian-British citizens and said: “We will continue our around-the-clock efforts to secure the freedom of our citizens, including Morad Tahbaz, a British-American citizen who has been wrongfully detained.”

Barry Rosen, a former hostage of the US Embassy in Iran, in an interview with the Persian service of Voice of America said: “I am immensely pleased about the release of Nazanin Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori and about Morad Tahbaz’s release being underway. This took far too long and they spent years in prison. For me, it is a moment of great joy and at the same time sadness; because many other hostages still remain in Iran. This is a moment we must pay attention to and see what it means for us.”

He added that Iran has been using “hostage-taking diplomacy” for years to generate income in exchange for detaining innocent people. He said: “When I spoke in Vienna with negotiators who were negotiating the nuclear agreement with Iran, I repeatedly reminded representatives of three European countries, as well as representatives of America and other European allies, that they must cooperate together and ensure that Iran will not do this again.”

Barry Rosen said that all these negotiators can hold Iran accountable by signing a warning. He added: “I sincerely believe that no agreement should be made with Iran until all hostages are freed and there is an assurance that Iran will not take hostages again. And if they repeat it, any agreement with Iran should be completely nullified. Iran should no longer use hostage-taking as part of its foreign policy.”

He continued: “I sincerely believe that no agreement with Iran should be signed unless all hostages have been freed and guarantees are obtained that Iran will never take hostages again, and if they do, we will completely suspend any agreement with Iran. Iran should no longer use hostage-taking as part of its foreign policy.”

Iranian users on social media criticized the detention of these dual or multiple nationality citizens and their release in exchange for money. However, Hossein Amirabdollahian, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran, denied any connection between the release of these individuals and receipt of money.

Iran’s foreign minister said: “We had a claim of more than 390 million pounds prior to the triumph of the Islamic Revolution regarding certain defense purchases from Britain, and a few days ago we managed to receive this amount.”

Amirabdollahian added: “A few days ago Britain’s debt to Iran was paid, but at the same time, the judicial proceedings and legal process for requesting the release of individuals who had been detained in Iran on security charges continued; perhaps in terms of timing, the days of release and money transfer were close to each other, but there is no connection between these two issues.”

He continued: “The release of Nazanin Zaghari and Anoosheh Ashoori was ultimately achieved with a humanitarian perspective in the Islamic Republic of Iran, and reports about taking money and releasing these individuals are inaccurate and incorrect.”

• Nizar Zakka: The Release of Other Hostages is Underway

Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese-American citizen who was imprisoned in Iran for four years, in an interview with the Persian service of Voice of America said: “The information we have indicates that the process of releasing hostages is being pursued rapidly. It started with Britain and is being pursued with citizens of other countries.”

He added: “The previous agreement was that all hostages would be released with or without a nuclear agreement, and this was a promise we were given that there would be no agreement unless no hostages remained. The agreement has been reached in this regard and they will be released, and we expect all Western hostages to be released within a few weeks. Unless something very bad happens, we think this process will continue.”

Nizar Zakka said: “This was supposed to happen in June of last year, and an agreement was proposed where Britain would pay its debt to Iran and America would not create obstacles to freeing Iranian money in South Korea, Iraq, and Japan – money that had been blocked due to sanctions. In return, all hostages were supposed to be released. In any case, we now think we have reached a point where an agreement has been reached and this is only the beginning. Morad Tahbaz is a prime example of that, as he has been released from prison on furlough and will be freed with a second group and with American hostages.”