LANDSTUHL , Germany, Jan. 20 (UPI) — Jason Rezaian, freed from Iranian captivity, expressed his appreciation Wednesday for help with his release and an interest in privacy with his family.
Rezaian, 40, the Washington Post bureau chief in Tehran, was released in a weekend prisoner swap last week, with former U.S. Marine Amir Hekmati and Christian pastor Saeed Abedini. Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari, who was also freed, elected to stay in Iran, U.S. officials said. Each is an Iranian-American citizen.
Iranian officials also announced the release of Matthew Trevithick, a detained American student, although his case is unrelated to the prisoner exchange.
A statement from Rezaian, now at the Landstuhl Regional Medical center, a U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, thanked the Swiss Foreign Ministry for its assistance, as well as the Swiss Air Force and the doctors on the base, referring to the base as “a great place to begin my recovery.”
He added he will offer no other statements in the near future.
“For now, I want to catch up with what’s been going on in the world, watch a [Golden State] Warriors game or two, and see the Star Wars movie.”
Rezaian was arrested in July 2014, and held captive since.
On Tuesday, Heckmati, 32, also expressed appreciation for help with his release after four years of captivity, saying he was “humbled at everybody’s support, from the president to Congress to my fellow Marines, and especially my family who have really gone through so much throughout this time. There is a lot that I have to say about the experience, and what happened, and I hope to bring that to the American people and the world.”
