White House Seeks 'Pope's Help for the Release of American Prisoners in Iran'

The website 'Politico' reports that the U.S. government is in contact with the Vatican to see if Pope Francis can assist in efforts to free Iranian-Americans imprisoned in Iran. On September 20, Politico cited a source familiar with the matter, stating that the U.S. government and Pope Francis have discussed this issue over the past months. The family of at least one Iranian-American prisoner has also directly contacted Pope Francis, seeking his help. Iranian and American officials have exchanged statements regarding Iranian-American prisoners, including Saeed Abedini, a pastor, Amir Hekmati, a former soldier, and Jason Rezaian, a journalist for the Washington Post. U.S. officials have repeatedly urged Tehran to release these three individuals and assist in locating Robert Levinson, a former FBI agent. Earlier in mid-September, Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, hinted at the possibility of prisoner exchanges between the two countries during a radio interview in the U.S. This topic was also addressed in a recent interview with Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran. Mr. Rouhani, when asked about the possibility of 'prisoner exchanges' between Iran and the U.S., stated that he does not like to use the term 'prisoner exchange,' but if humanitarian steps can be taken, 'we must take those steps.' Pope Francis has been influential in establishing and advancing relations between the U.S. and Cuba. He visited Washington this week. The Catholic Church leader also met with Shahindokht Molaverdi, Iran's Vice President, last February. The Vatican has strongly supported the nuclear agreement reached between Iran and six world powers. Both the Vatican and the U.S. government have refrained from commenting on the news published by Politico.