Bauer, Fattal Freed

Two US Citizens Leaving Tehran for Muscat

Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal were freed today and left Tehran’s Evin prison in custody of the Swiss and Omani Ambassadors in Tehran. They are on their way to the airport to board a private jet sent by the Sultan of Oman taking them to Muscat.

Bauer and Fattal had been convicted on charges of espionage and illegal entry into Iran and were sentenced last month to eight years in prison. They maintained their innocence throughout their detention, saying they were hiking in the mountainous Kurdish area of Iraq when inadvertently crossed the unmarked border with Iran.

Bauer, 28, and Fattal, 29, were arrested on 31 July 2009, along with a third American, Sarah Shourd. She was allowed home on bail in September 2010.

Two Americans to Be Freed – Iran Ambassador

Iran's ambassador to Iraq Hassan Dannaie-Far has told the Associated Press in an interview that Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal, the two American hikers held in Iran on espionage charges, will be released during Ramadan. The Islamic holy month began on Monday and ends on or about 29 August [AP, 4 August].

Bauer, Fattal and a third American, Sarah Shourd, were arrested in July 2009 after they said they mistakenly crossed into Iran while hiking in Iraq. Shourd was released on bail last September.

Iran Puts Three Americans on Trial

An Iranian revolutionary court put three Americans on trial today on charges of “spying and illegally entering the country.” The Americans, Shane Bauer, Josh Fattal and Sarah Shourd, say they were on a hiking trip in the Iraqi Kurdistan and were arrested on the unmarked border between the two countries by the Iranian authorities on 31 July 2009.

The trial is being held behind closed doors and the Swiss Ambassador to Tehran Livia Leu Agosti who represents US interests in Iran was barred from attending the proceedings.

"I was not invited to the court and it was my decision to come. So far the authorities have not allowed me in," Agosti told the Iranian news agency IRNA [6 February 2011].

Bauer and Fattal are in custody in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison. Shourd is in the US on bail since last September. The Swiss ambassador confirmed today that Shourd was not attending the trial.

Yesterday, their Iranian lawyer, Masoud Shafii, denied the charges against them and said he had been denied access to Bauer and Fattal to work on their defense.

"I should have met with Shane and Josh to prepare the defense, but I was not allowed," Shafii said. "I have studied the case in full detail. The question of spying is irrelevant. There is just the question of illegal entry, which even if it has happened has been inadvertent as the border was unmarked," Shafii added [AFP, 5 February].

Iran Frees Sarah Shourd - UPDATE

Sarah Shourd with her mother, Nora, in Muscat, Oman

14 September 2010

Sarah Shourd detained for more than a year in Iran was released today. Her lawyer told reporters in Tehran that Shourd was indeed released and was undergoing formalities at the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran where she had been held in solitary confinement. Two other fellow American hikers still remain in prison.

Photos: AP

UPDATE: Sarah Shourd's flight took off from Tehran's Merabad airport following her release from prison.

UPDATE: She has reunited with her mother in Mascat, Oman.

Sarah Shourd to be Released – Prosecutor

The Tehran prosecutor today reversed course and announced that Sarah Shourd will be released on bail. Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi had earlier cancelled a scheduled release of Ms. Shourd, and today criticized the government for interfering with the Judiciary in the case of the three detained American hikers.

Sarah Shourd, 32, Shane Michael Bauer and Joshua Felix Fattal, both 28, were arrested in July 2009 after apparently crossing the Iranian border in the mountainous region of Iraqi Kurdistan. The prosecutor identified Ms. Shourd’s illness as the reason for her release.

Iran to Release Sarah Shourd, One of Three American Hikers - UPDATES

The Iranian Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance announced in Tehran that one of the three American hikers arrested near the Iraqi Kurdistan border in July 2009, would be released on Saturday. According to reports by various news agencies, the Iranian Mission to the UN has identified the American to be freed as Sarah Shourd.

Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd are being held in Tehran’s infamous Evin prison.

UPDATE: Tehran's Prosecutor General has told Iranian news agency ILNA that the Judiciary will NOT release Ms. Shourd on Saturday. Abbas Jaffari Doulatabadi, the prosecutor, said, "the judiciary dossier of the accused is not yet complete." Sarah Shourd was to be released on Saturday morning local time during a ceremony attended by senior officials of the Islamic Republic. The senior leaders in Iran have not confirmed or denied Tehran prosecutor's assertion that Ms. Shourd would not be released as planned.

UPDATE II: Iran’s official news agency IRNA has confirmed the reports that Sarah Shourd’s release has been called off. The cruel handling of Sarah’s release again brings into question of who’s in charge in Iran.