prisoner swap

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Russia Says Inmate Swap Has Become More Likely

A day after Griner is put in a penal colony, diplomat expresses confidence about getting arms dealer back

(Newser) - A Russian official said Friday that the likelihood of a prisoner exchange with the US has improved, a day after his government imprisoned American athlete Brittney Griner in a penal colony. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Russia wants a trade that would have the US return arms trafficker Viktor...

US, Venezuela Swap Detainees
Venezuela Frees 7 Americans
Oct 1, 2022 4:55 PM CDT

Venezuela Frees 7 Americans

Biden releases drug convicts in exchange for US detainees

(Newser) - Seven Americans who were detained in Venezuela are coming home after a prisoner swap in exchange for two imprisoned members of President Nicolas Maduro's family, President Biden announced Saturday. The decision to grant clemency to the two Venezuelans, who are nephews of Maduro's wife, was made by Biden,...

Brittney Griner to Learn Her Fate Within Hours

Russian prosecutors request 9.5-year sentence for WNBA star

(Newser) - Brittney Griner is expected to learn her fate in her drug smuggling case within hours, and Russian prosecutors have made clear they want it to be a harsh one. Prosecutors on Thursday asked a judge to sentence Griner to 9.5 years in prison, just shy of the 10-year maximum,...

This Is the Russian on Offer in Exchange for Britney Griner

Viktor Bout, former Soviet military translator, could pass on intelligence, says pundit

(Newser) - The imprisoned Russian arms dealer the Biden administration has reportedly offered to swap for Russian detainees Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan is known here as the "Merchant of Death." Viktor Bout—who reportedly inspired Nicolas Cage's arms dealer character in 2005's Lord of War—is serving...

US Suggests Trade to Russia for Griner, Whelan

Blinken says he hopes to discuss the deal with Lavrov this week

(Newser) - The Biden administration has settled on a proposal for Russia, offering to trade an imprisoned Russian arms trafficker for Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan. President Biden has agreed to the exchange of detainees, which has been under discussion for months, despite the Justice Department's opposition to such deals, CNN...

Russia, US Complete Drawn-Out Prisoner Swap

Biden administration exchanges Konstantin Yaroshenko for Trevor Reed

(Newser) - The Biden administration has just seen its highest-profile release of an American deemed wrongly detained abroad—courtesy of Russia. Russia and the US carried out a dramatic prisoner exchange on Wednesday, trading a Marine veteran jailed in Moscow for a convicted Russian drug trafficker serving a long prison sentence in...

After 6 Years Detained in Iran, She's Back Home With Daughter, 7

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori are released

(Newser) - Update: After years in detention in Iran, two British-Iranian nationals are back in the UK. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori were released Wednesday and arrived home early Thursday, following months of negotiations between the UK and Iran, the BBC reports. In a photo shared by Ashoori's daughter, Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 43,...

After 3 Years in Iran, 'Another American Is Coming Home'

Princeton grad student Xiyue Wang, 38, released as part of prisoner exchange

(Newser) - "Another American is coming home." That was the early Saturday tweet from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, with good news for the family of Xiyue Wang, the Chinese American graduate student who's been held prisoner in Iran for more than three years. CNN and NBC News report...

Taliban Releases Last American Hostage

Kevin King, Australian Timothy Weeks flown to US air base in Afghanistan

(Newser) - The last known American to be held by the Taliban is free. Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks, professors kidnapped at gunpoint while leaving the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul in August 2016, were released to US forces in Afghanistan on Tuesday in exchange for three Taliban commanders who...

Taliban to Free American, Australian Hostages
US Taliban
Hostage
to Go Free
Nov 12, 2019 8:13 AM CST

US Taliban Hostage to Go Free

3 Taliban commanders released in Afghan prisoner swap

(Newser) - Two American University of Afghanistan professors kidnapped by the Taliban three years after they were kidnapped at gunpoint may finally go free. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said Tuesday that American Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks would be freed in exchange for the release of three Taliban commanders, including the...

Politico: Obama Gave Iran More Than It Admitted
Politico: Obama White House
Didn't Tell Full Story on Iran
investigation
Apr 24, 2017 12:46 PM CDT

Politico: Obama White House Didn't Tell Full Story on Iran

Report alleges US gave Tehran more than it admitted

(Newser) - Politico is out with a damning report about the Obama administration's dealings with Iran last year in the lead-up to a nuclear arms accord. The story by Josh Meyer alleges that former President Obama gave up more than he acknowledged publicly, particularly in regard to a prisoner swap...

Iran Prisoner Swap Almost Foiled by Last-Minute Twist

Iranian officials detained Jason Rezaian's wife, mother on Sunday

(Newser) - A prisoner swap that included the release of five Americans held in Iran was almost foiled by a last-minute twist on Sunday: the detention of Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian's wife and mother. Rezaian, Marine veteran Amir Hekmati, and Christian pastor Saeed Abedini were about to leave Tehran—a...

Plane Carrying Freed Americans Leaves Iran

Jason Rezaian's '545-day nightmare' is over: 'Post' publisher

(Newser) - A senior US official says the plane carrying Americans who had been imprisoned by Iran has left Tehran. The Obama administration official isn't saying whether all four Americans were on the plane, just that "our detained US citizens have been released and that those who wished to depart...

Prisoner Swap for Kidnapped Girls? Militants in Talks

Boko Haram seeks return of 30 commanders: CNN

(Newser) - Boko Haram militants have been meeting with officials to discuss the possible release of some 200 girls kidnapped in April, CNN reports. Talks between two top Boko Haram figures and officials from the International Committee of the Red Cross and Nigeria's government hinge on the possibility of a prisoner...

White House: We Thought Bergdahl Would Be Killed

Says it bypassed Congress because of threats by Taliban

(Newser) - The Obama administration has told senators it didn't notify Congress about the pending swap of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for five Taliban officials because the Taliban had threatened to kill him if the deal was made public before it happened. That's according to three congressional officials who spoke to...

Bowe Bergdahl's Sweetheart Has New Boyfriend

Monica Lee knew she had his blessing to move on, her mom says

(Newser) - Now that he's coming home, Bowe Bergdahl will surely see his old sweetheart—and learn that after 5 long years she apparently has a new boyfriend, the Daily Mail reports. Monica Lee, 25, "was very surprised and excited to hear he'd been freed" in a prisoner swap...

US Sweetens Taliban Deal in Bid to Get POW Back

Sources say officials are willing to set 5 Gitmo prisoners free at once

(Newser) - Time is ticking away for the US to extract American POW Bowe Bergdahl before the bulk of US forces withrdraw from Afghanistan this year, and the Obama administration is now once again considering a prisoner swap. The administration is looking to re-open talks with the Taliban about trading the Army...

Israel to Free Bombers, Killers in Soldier Swap

Jerusalem releases names of first prisoners to be freed

(Newser) - The founders of Hamas' militant wing. The organizer of a Jerusalem bombing that killed 15. A woman who lured a lovelorn Israeli teen to a Palestinian city to be murdered. All will be released in Israel's planned swap of Palestinian political prisoners for a single kidnapped Israeli solder, the...

Israel, Hamas Close to Schalit Prisoner Swap Deal

Hamas will have to deport some of 1,000 freed prisoners

(Newser) - A deal to swap 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for Sgt. Gilad Schalit, the 23-year-old Israeli who's been held by Hamas for 3 1/2 years, appears close after a whirlwind of negotiations between Hamas and the Israeli government. After a late-night session, Israel has reportedly replied to a Hamas offer conveyed...

Freed Terrorists Enjoy Hero's Welcome

Hezbollah brass band greets child killer released after nearly 30 years

(Newser) - Freed terrorist Samir Qantar, who bludgeoned a 4-year-old child to death with the butt of his rifle in a raid on an Israeli community, was given a red-carpet and rose-petals hero's welcome yesterday by Lebanese president Michel Suleiman and Hezbollah leaders, reports the Times of London. Qantar, who has been...

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