An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US mural near the former American embassy in Tehran. EPA
An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US mural near the former American embassy in Tehran. EPA
An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US mural near the former American embassy in Tehran. EPA
An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US mural near the former American embassy in Tehran. EPA

US approves $6bn transfer for Iran as part of prisoner deal


Willy Lowry
  • English
  • Arabic

President Joe Biden's administration has cleared the way for the release of five American citizens detained in Iran by issuing a waiver for international banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian money from South Korea to Qatar, the State Department said on Monday.

As part of the deal, the administration has also agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the US.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed off on the deal late last week but Congress was not notified of the decision until Monday.

A State Department representative said the freed Iranian money could only be used for humanitarian needs and stressed that none of Washington's tough sanctions against Iran had been lifted.

“It is long-standing US policy to ensure our sanctions do not prevent food, medicine and other humanitarian goods and services from flowing to ordinary people, no matter how objectionable their governments,” the representative told The National.

“We have not lifted any of our sanctions on Iran, and Iran is not receiving any sanctions relief.”

The Americans to be freed are US-Iranian dual citizens and include businessmen Siamak Namazi, 51, and Emad Shargi, 59, and environmentalist Morad Tahbaz, 67, who also holds British citizenship, a Biden administration representative told Reuters.

The identities of the fourth and fifth Americans, one of whom, according to two sources, is a woman, have not been disclosed, the news agency reported.

It was not immediately known which Iranian prisoners the US would release.

The waiver is expected to draw renewed criticism of Mr Biden from Republicans and others that the deal will boost the Iranian economy at a time when Tehran poses a growing threat to US troops and Middle East allies.

On X, formerly Twitter, Senator Chuck Grassley said “it’s ridiculous for US to be blackmailed into paying $6 billion for hostages, which will help indirectly finance the number 1 foreign policy of Iran: terrorism”.

Senator Tom Cotton accused Mr Biden of “paying ransom to the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism”.

The waiver means that European, Middle Eastern and Asian banks will not run afoul of US sanctions in converting the money frozen in South Korea and transferring it to Qatar’s central bank, where it will be held for Iran to use for the purchase of humanitarian goods.

The transfer of the $6 billion was the critical element in the prisoner release deal, under which four of the five American detainees were transferred from Iranian jails to house arrest last month.

The fifth detainee had already been under house arrest.

Islamophobia definition

A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

Bert van Marwijk factfile

Born: May 19 1952
Place of birth: Deventer, Netherlands
Playing position: Midfielder

Teams managed:
1998-2000 Fortuna Sittard
2000-2004 Feyenoord
2004-2006 Borussia Dortmund
2007-2008 Feyenoord
2008-2012 Netherlands
2013-2014 Hamburg
2015-2017 Saudi Arabia
2018 Australia

Major honours (manager):
2001/02 Uefa Cup, Feyenoord
2007/08 KNVB Cup, Feyenoord
World Cup runner-up, Netherlands

The Vile

Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah

Director: Majid Al Ansari

Rating: 4/5

GIANT REVIEW

Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan

Director: Athale

Rating: 4/5

Conservative MPs who have publicly revealed sending letters of no confidence
  1. Steve Baker
  2. Peter Bone
  3. Ben Bradley
  4. Andrew Bridgen
  5. Maria Caulfield​​​​​​​
  6. Simon Clarke 
  7. Philip Davies
  8. Nadine Dorries​​​​​​​
  9. James Duddridge​​​​​​​
  10. Mark Francois 
  11. Chris Green
  12. Adam Holloway
  13. Andrea Jenkyns
  14. Anne-Marie Morris
  15. Sheryll Murray
  16. Jacob Rees-Mogg
  17. Laurence Robertson
  18. Lee Rowley
  19. Henry Smith
  20. Martin Vickers 
  21. John Whittingdale
Countries recognising Palestine

France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra

 

The specs

Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo and dual electric motors

Power: 300hp at 6,000rpm

Torque: 520Nm at 1,500-3,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 8.0L/100km

Price: from Dh199,900

On sale: now

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

Pearls on a Branch: Oral Tales
​​​​​​​Najlaa Khoury, Archipelago Books

Updated: September 12, 2023, 4:06 AM