Since the

Iran hostage crisis On November 4, 1979, 52 United States diplomats and citizens were held hostage after a group of militarized Iranian college students belonging to the Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's Line, who supported the Iranian Revolution, took over ...

, the

Islamic Republic of Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

has engaged in a pattern of detaining foreign nationals for extended periods. Dual nationals of Iran and another country are particularly vulnerable to arbitrary detention because the international Master Nationality Rule provides that "a State may not afford diplomatic protection to one of its nationals against a state whose nationality such person also possesses". According to the

Center for Human Rights in Iran The Center for Human Rights in Iran (formerly the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran; ICHRI) is an American non-government organization that aims to promote human rights in Iran. The group started in late 2007 when several human right ...

, the Iranian government has used imprisoned dual and foreign-only nationals "as bargaining chips in its dealings with other nations." In November 2017, Reuters reported that Iran's

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC; fa, سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی, Sepāh-e Pāsdārān-e Enghelāb-e Eslāmi, lit=Army of Guardians of the Islamic Revolution also Sepāh or Pasdaran for short) is a branch o ...

(IRGC) had arrested "at least 30 dual nationals during the past two years, mostly on spying charges." According to

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

, "Iranian authorities have violated detainees' due process rights and carried out a pattern of politically motivated arrests." In September 2019, on the sidelines of the

Seventy-fourth session of the United Nations General Assembly The Seventy-fourth session of the United Nations General Assembly was the session of the United Nations General Assembly which was opened on 17 of September 2019 until 16 September 2020. The theme for the 74th Session is "Effective responses to g ...

, families of dual and foreign nationals imprisoned in Iran as well former dual and foreign nationals imprisoned in Iran launched the "Alliance of Families Against State Hostage Taking." In January 2023,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

called for the release of seven nationals, who were held in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. One of the detainees, Fariba Adelkhak was arrested in June 2019, along with her colleague Roland Marchal. While Marchal was released in 2020, but Fraiban Adelkhak remained in prison amid mounting political tensions in Iran. This list of current and former detainees in Iran excludes people abducted in other countries and brought into the country.

Current foreign nationals imprisoned in Iran

U.S. citizens

U.S. permanent residents

Iran hostage crisis detainees (1979 - 1981)

British citizens

List of British permanent residents

Canadian citizens

Canadian permanent residents

Australian citizens

New Zealand citizens

Lebanese citizens

French citizens

French permanent residents

German citizens

Austrian citizens

Russian citizens

Dutch citizens

Swedish citizens

Finnish citizens

Belgian citizens

Armenian citizens

South African citizens

References

{{reflist

External links

"Dual Nationals and Foreigners Held in Iran"
(

United States Institute of Peace The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American federal institution tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. It provides research, analysis, and training to individuals in diplomacy, mediation, and other pea ...

)
"Who Are the Dual and Foreign Nationals Imprisoned in Iran?"
(

) Prisoners and detainees of Iran Lists of prisoners and detainees Human rights abuses in Iran