U.S. State Department Criticizes Return of Baqer Namazi to Evin Prison

The spokesperson for the U.S. State Department expressed deep regret over the news of Baqer Namazi's summons to return to Evin Prison, stating that Washington urges Tehran to release "all Americans imprisoned in Iran." Heather Nauert, the spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, said on February 6 that she was "deeply saddened" to hear about the Iranian government's decision to return [Baqer Namazi] to prison. Nauert emphasized that Baqer Namazi, an 81-year-old citizen, and his son Siamak Namazi are both imprisoned in Evin, and the U.S. is concerned about his health: "We know he urgently needs sustained medical assistance." Last Sunday, Jared Genser, the American lawyer for Baqer and Siamak Namazi, announced that Iranian officials had agreed to a four-day leave for Baqer Namazi due to concerns about his health. The U.S. State Department spokesperson welcomed this news shortly after its release, stressing that "this is a temporary release" and that the U.S. calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all Americans who have been "unjustly" imprisoned by the Iranian government. Ultimately, on Tuesday, February 6, it was reported that Baqer Namazi had been summoned back to Evin Prison, despite hopes that his leave might be extended. Baqer Namazi, a former employee of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), was arrested two years ago when he traveled to Tehran to visit his son. The Namazis have been sentenced to ten years in prison on charges of collaborating with "hostile foreign governments." In addition to Baqer and Siamak Namazi, several other American citizens are currently imprisoned in Iran, including Shiyue (Xiao) Wang, a PhD student from Princeton University who was conducting research in Iran and was sentenced to ten years in prison for "collaborating with a foreign government." Lawyers and families of these imprisoned citizens have denied these charges. The U.S. State Department spokesperson reiterated on Tuesday that the U.S. demands the release of all American prisoners in Iran who are "unjustly" detained: "including Siamak Namazi, Shiyue Wang, and also Robert Levinson, who has been missing in Iran for more than a decade." Some analysts and observers of Iranian affairs say that the Islamic Republic uses the detention of dual citizens as a bargaining tool with several Western countries. Tehran has denied this, stating that its judiciary makes decisions regarding charges and convictions "independently." However, similar analyses and speculations regarding the imprisonment of dual citizens have continued after the release of several Iranian-American citizens on the eve of the "JCPOA". Jason Rezaian, one of the prisoners released on the eve of the JCPOA, reacted to Baqer Namazi's return to Evin on Twitter, stating that this indicates a "deterioration of the unjust imprisonment situation of dual citizens in Iran for political objectives."