US-Iran prisoner swap deal: US issues waiver for banks to transfer frozen Iranian money

The Biden administration has cleared the way for the release of five American citizens detained in Iran by issuing a blanket waiver for international banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian money from South Korea to Qatar without fear of US sanctions, The Associated Press reported Monday.

In addition, as part of the deal, the administration has agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the United States, the news agency said.

The deal was agreed upon last month and, as a first step, Iran at the time released four US citizens from Tehran’s Evin prison into house arrest, where they joined a fifth, who was already under house arrest.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed off on the sanctions waivers late last week, but Congress was not informed of the waiver decision until Monday, according to the notification, which was obtained by The Associated Press. READ MORE