U.S. State Department Confirms Imprisonment of Another American in Iran

After a Persian-language source and then the New York Times reported that an American citizen named "Michael R. White" has been imprisoned in Vakilabad prison in Mashhad for about five months, the U.S. State Department confirmed the "imprisonment of an American citizen in Iran" and stated that it is aware of the situation. The IranWire website, a Persian-language media outlet based abroad, reported on Monday, January 7, that three former prisoners of Vakilabad in Mashhad have confirmed the imprisonment of an American in this prison. Hours later, the New York Times wrote that a 46-year-old American citizen named "Michael R. White," who has a background in the U.S. Navy, has been imprisoned in Mashhad since late July of the previous year (early August). The New York Times contacted the U.S. State Department regarding this matter, and an official from the department told the newspaper, "We are aware of reports regarding the detention of a U.S. citizen in Iran. Nothing is more important to us than the health and safety of American citizens abroad. Due to privacy considerations, we cannot provide further information at this time." The New York Times also requested a response from the Iranian delegation to the United Nations but received no reply. According to Joan White, Michael R. White's mother, Mr. White had traveled to Iran five or six times to see his girlfriend and intended to leave Iran with her this time, but he was arrested at the airport. Mr. White's mother and other sources express ignorance about the reasons for his arrest and any charges brought against him. Michael White's mother told the New York Times that the U.S. State Department is following up on Michael White's situation through the Swiss embassy, which serves as the U.S. interests protector in Iran. There are also concerns about Michael White's health. His mother stated that he suffers from severe asthma and had undergone chemotherapy and radiation therapy due to a tumor in his neck before his last trip to Iran. The imprisonment of American citizens in Iran and similar actions by the U.S. have been issues that have increased tensions between the two countries since the 1979 revolution. On January 15, 2017, coinciding with the implementation of the JCPOA, Jason Rezaian, a Washington Post reporter, Amir Hekmati, a former Marine, Saeed Abedini, a Christian convert, and Nasratollah Khosravi Roudsari, four Iranian-American citizens, were released from Iranian prisons, and in exchange for their release, the U.S. government agreed to release seven Iranian prisoners in the U.S. It later became clear that simultaneously with the release of these four prisoners from Iranian prisons, the U.S. sent an equivalent of $400 million in cash, which was part of confiscated Iranian assets related to Iran's arms purchases from the U.S. during the Shah's time, to Tehran on a plane. Meanwhile, Xiao Wang, a Chinese-American researcher at Princeton University, has been sentenced to ten years in prison in Iran. Siamak Namazi, a dual Iranian-American national, has also been detained since October 2015 during a trip to Tehran. He was sentenced to ten years in prison on charges of "collaborating with a hostile government of the U.S." Mohammad Baqer Namazi, a former UNICEF official in Iran and governor of Khuzestan before the 1979 revolution, was arrested in March 2016 while traveling to Iran to follow up on the status of his elder son, Siamak Namazi. Baqer Namazi is currently on medical leave outside of prison and is banned from leaving the country. Robert Levinson, a former FBI agent, also disappeared in the winter of 2007 after traveling to Kish Island. Iranian officials say they have no information about Mr. Levinson's fate or whereabouts.