After four and a half years in an Iranian prison, Amir Hekmati has finally returned home to Flint, Michigan.
Hekmati, a US marine who was freed in a complex prisoner exchange with Iranlast week, arrived at Flint’s Bishop international airport on Thursday afternoon alongside his sisters and brother-in-law. He was greeted on the tarmac by his young nephew and niece, a group of veterans and a crush of reporters eager to know what the young man planned to do with his freedom.
“Happy to be home,” Hekmati, 32, told reporters as snow fell on the tarmac. “It’s been a very long road. It’s been a very long journey, and unfortunately many people have traveled this road with me.”
He thanked everyone who fought for his release, from the president to local citizens to his brothers in arms. “I’m standing here healthy, tall and with my head held high,” he said, before being escorted away from the media’s glare. “I’m glad to be here and I appreciate everyone’s support once again.”
Hekmati was picked up by Iranian security officials in August 2011, two weeks after arriving in Tehran from Dubai on a family visit. Iran’s security and intelligence apparatus are generally suspicious of dual citizens like Hekmati. He was tried, convicted and sentenced to death for spying.
Iran’s supreme court annulled the death sentence after Hekmati appealed, ordering a retrial in 2012. The country’s Revolutionary Court then overturned his conviction for espionage, instead charging him with “cooperating with hostile governments” and sentenced him to 10 years in prison.
Hekmati was released last week, alongside other Americans including Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, Christian minister Saeed Abedini and Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari. A fifth American, a language student, Matt Trevithick, was also released but was not part of the exchange deal.
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