Iran Frees One Dane, Two Austrian-Iranian Citizens

Brussels, June 3 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Jun, 2023 ) :Three Europeans released from detention by Iran arrived in Belgium early Saturday, the latest in a series of prisoner swaps.

One Dane and two Austrian-Iranian citizens landed shortly before 2:45 am (0045 GMT) at Melsbroek military airport just outside Brussels. They had flown from Muscat, the capital of Oman, which helped broker their release.

Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib welcomed them at the airport, as well as Danish and Austrian diplomats.

The trio's release, as well as that of a Belgian aid worker a week earlier, were part of a prisoner swap in which Tehran got back an Iranian diplomat convicted and incarcerated in Belgium on terrorism charges.

Vienna reacted with relief at the release of its two citizens, named as Kamran Ghaderi and Massud Mossaheb, who it said had been arrested "unjustly" by Iran in January 2016 and January 2019, respectively.

Thanking Belgium, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said: "Our years of diplomatic efforts to secure their release have borne fruit... Today is a very emotional day for all of us."The Danish man, who was not immediately identified, had been arrested in Iran in November 2022 on the sidelines of a demonstration for women's rights, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said.