An American citizen and former unofficial wrongfully held in Iran
for more than 6.5 years, has been allowed to travel abroad today
to seek medical treatment. His son has been released from prison
on a temporary furlough but still cannot leave Iran.
Ahvaz has the story.
Judy 85 year old Buccaneer. Nemazee is one of four Iranian Americans
who've been detained by Iran or barred from leaving the country,
including his son, CMAC Nemazee, who has been held in prison since
2015, both father and son had been sentenced to what US and UN officials
called baseless espionage charges. Nemazee traveled to Oman today
and recently landed in Abu Dhabi, where he will undergo surgery.
Jared Genser is a human rights attorney and pro bono counsel for
the Namazi family. And he joins me now, Jared, Welcome to the news
hour. Thank you for joining us here has been in Iranian custody since
2016. This surgery he'll get could save his life. Have you talked
to him today? How is he doing?
I spoke to him yesterday. He's been traveling today. It's been a
long ordeal to get from Tehran to you. A as you can imagine, especially
when you're talking about the recovery of American hostage. But I
spoke to him yesterday, the day before. I mean, he is on the one
hand, uh, excited and and and grateful for the fact that so many
people the U. N the United States
Man. You a of all come together to get him out. But at the same time,
this is a very bittersweet day because his son see him back in Mozzie
remains a hostage in Iran. Although he's out on one week renewable
furlough. He spent seven years and counting and could be sent back
to jail any time.
What can you tell us? Jared about the negotiations that went into
this. I mean, he's been there since 2016 held and detained, right.
His sentence was commuted in 2020. But he hasn't been allowed to
leave. Why? Now? I think that the Iranians must have come to believe
that, you know, given the next major surgery he needs to have, which
is to unblock one of the main arteries to his, uh
His brain that it was a great risk to keep him in Iran, where he
could die on the operating table. You know, the reality is that he
has been subjected to Ah, you know, totally arbitrary travel ban
for more than two years, even under running law. There was no justification
for keeping him in Iran. Yet they still hope to trade him for something
of value. And I think that they finally let them go realizing that
there is really nothing left except for downside for them if they
try to keep them and if if something went wrong the operation
So as you mentioned one of his sons, CMAC has been imprisoned for
seven years is now out on a temporary furlough. But what can you
tell us about him and how he's doing and whether this means it's
a step towards his release. The bottom line is having worked on behalf
of the nemesis for years myself. Today can be nothing other than
a good day. Um it was a bittersweet day because the market you know
is still behind.
You know, our hope is that this humanitarian gesture by Iran both
lifting the travel ban in Boston to Mozzie, letting him go and letting
Cmac out on a one week furlough, which hopefully will be renewed.
Um, you know, is a clear sign to the United States when we taken
as such, um, you know, as a reason to put to finally come to a negotiated
settlement on all of the outstanding hostage cases.
Because they're of course to other American hostages in Iran as well,
and all of them need to come home to their families and their nightmare
Jews to be brought to an end. Does he have to go back to Iran after
the surgery? Or does this mean he's free?
No, no, he's free. And he was free as of 2020. And this was the bizarre
thing about what the government of Iran have been doing in this case,
you know they themselves community sentenced to time served their
own courts did and yet, you know, they refused to give him a passport
to be able to leave the country. You mentioned the other Americans
who are held there. Imad Sharky and Murad Tabas remain detained in
Iran. We've been in touch with the family of Imad Sharky. They sent
us this statement today, saying, in part that we wish the U. S could
have secured Imad freedom as well. Instead, he remains an innocent
American wrongfully imprisoned in Iran. We urged the U. S government
to do everything it can to bring him home to us. Jared, you have
worked for years on these kinds of cases. Hundreds of people have
been freed because of your work. Do you believe the U. S government
is doing everything it can
Right now. I think the answer to that question is yes. Having represented
animosities myself since, uh, November of 2016. There have been long
periods of time where the answer was no. But you know, we need a
renewed sense of urgency to come to a final deal and to resolve this
outstanding group of cases, and ultimately we also get to the need
to get to the broader question of how does the United States
As a country deal with these kinds of situations around the world,
because, you know, our policies have been consistently inconsistent.
You know, we don't negotiate with terrorists. Except when we do.
We don't pay ransom except when we do right and we need a multilateral
approach to this problem because it is not just an American problem.
There are you know postures that Iran has for many other countries
around the world and
And many other countries in the world take foreigners hostage as
a matter of state practice. Jared does this moment in Iran, though,
present the window for negotiations in some way The regime is under
pressure right there facing these protests after the death of Lhasa
mini, they're trying to follow through on the nuclear deal talks.
There's a pressure there. Is that a window of opportunity for the
U. S. I think it definitely is and more hopeful today than I've been,
um, really at all over the some six years that I've been involved
in these cases
Um, not only because of bunker is free, but you know, they didn't
have to. Let's zoom back out on her furlough, even though he had
a right to a furlough, Having served half of a sentence of five years
and has been for seven Um you know, they didn't have to put up let
him out on the on the furlough and the fact that he did alongside
letting his father leave says to me that they're trying to send a
pretty clear signal which I hope the U. S will take up immediately.
And I believe that the U. S is in fact, kicking up immediately, And
so I am. I am hopeful that we can finally resolved all these outstanding
cases.
And referred back to the broader policy. Question of, you know, how
do we stop hostages being taken from? You know the United States
around the world as a as a broader question that is Jared Genser,
human rights attorney and pro bono, counsel for the pharmacy family
as Backronym. Ozzy is allowed to leave Iran for the first time in
six years.