US acknowledges ransom paid to Iran

19.08.2016
USA

The United States has confirmed the transfer of $400 men to Iran. State Department Spokesman John Kirby acknowledged that the transfer of money to the Iranian side was actually a ransom.

The heart of the Matter

We are dealing with a deal on supplying arms to Iran which the US disrupted after the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Only now, a few decades later, have the Americans agreed to pay recompense. Meanwhile the US withheld the payment as long as Americans held in Iranian prisons were not released.

Obama lies

Actually, the Americans were released on January 17th, 2016. However, US officials spoke about it only afterwards, in August of this year, after the incident was leaked to the US media.  US authorities (in particular President Obama) have denied that the matter at hand is a ransom.

The weakness of the regime

In the wake of new revelations, the State Department is trying to save face. This deal is already being used to criticize Obama and the Democrats as a symptom of the current regime in Washington’s weakness. This has especially been voiced by Donald Trump who often plays on anti-Iranian sentiment.

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