Nothing says "goodwill" quite like releasing a person you should never have detained in the first place, but hey, we will take the win.
President Donald Trump announced Wednesday evening that Iran has allowed American citizen Dena Karari to leave the country after being held for roughly 19 months on what her lawyer calls completely bogus charges. As Trending Politics reported, Trump made the announcement on Truth Social, because of course that is where major diplomatic victories get their debut these days.
"Iran has allowed an American Citizen, who was wrongfully detained in December of 2024 under the 'presidency' of Sleepy Joe Biden, to leave the Country. She is now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition," Trump wrote. He added that "The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran." You have to admire the scare quotes around "presidency" doing a lot of heavy lifting in that statement.
Karari was detained in Iran back in December 2024, and public details about why she was there or what exactly led to her capture remain pretty scarce. Her lawyer, Jared Genser, did not mince words about the situation, calling the charges politically motivated nonsense from the Iranian regime.
"I am delighted and excited to report that my client US citizen Dena Karari, who had been trapped in Iran since December 2024 on bogus charges is now free. This would not have happened but for the extraordinary and relentless efforts of President Donald Trump," Genser said in a statement. "Dena is now safe and traveling back to the United States."
The timing of all this is interesting, to say the least. Just days before the release, Trump was busy announcing a naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz targeting Iranian ships and customers, declaring the United States the "Guardian of the Hormuz Strait." So Iran went from being on the receiving end of military threats on Monday to making goodwill gestures by Wednesday. Funny how that works.
Earlier this year, the State Department indicated that negotiators planned to request the release of Americans detained in Iran as part of broader discussions. At that time, at least six U.S. citizens were estimated to be held in Iranian custody. Karari's release represents one of those cases, which means there are still Americans sitting in Iranian detention waiting for their turn.
No additional biographical details about Karari, including her profession or reasons for being in Iran, have been widely disclosed. Sometimes the best stories are the ones where the ending is good enough that you do not need all the backstory. American citizen locked up on fake charges is now free and heading home. That is the part that matters.
Now about those other five people still being held over there.
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