WASHINGTON, July 16 — United States (US) President Donald Trump has called the release of a US citizen held in Iran a "gesture of goodwill", even as conflict raged for a fifth night across the Middle East.
He said that an American who was "wrongfully detained" under the Biden administration in 2024 had been allowed to leave Iran.
"She is now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition. The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday.
Human rights attorney Jared Genser identified the American as Dena Karari.
"Dena is now safe and traveling back to the United States," Genser wrote on X (formerly Twitter), thanking Trump for his efforts to free her.
Iran has neither confirmed nor denied that Karari has been released.
The release came despite US military strikes across Iran aimed at reopening the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, and amid escalating threats from Trump that he will bomb Iran's power plants, bridges, and energy infrastructure.
Three US officials told Reuters that US strikes aimed at forcing open the strait are also targeting Iranian military capabilities that the US would want to destroy before executing more complex operations.
Iran has hit back with what it said were strikes targeting US bases in Kuwait and Jordan.
According to the New York Times, Karari, 53, is a resident of California. She had her passport seized as she visited relatives in the southwestern city of Shiraz in December 2024.
It cited Genser as saying that she was not detained, but was interrogated on various occasions by the authorities.
