Trump hails release of US citizen held in Iran as 'goodwill' gesture

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July 16, 2026 4:45 AM EDT

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit at the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, U.S., July 15, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper

July 16 (Reuters) - U.S. President ‌Donald Trump ​has ​called the release of a U.S. citizen held in Iran a "gesture of goodwill", even as conflict raged for ‌a fifth night across the Middle East.

Trump said in ⁠a post on Truth Social on Wednesday that an American who was "wrongfully detained" ‌under the Biden administration ‌in 2024 had been allowed to leave Iran.

"She is now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition. The United States ​of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran," Trump wrote.

Human rights attorney Jared Genser identified the American as ⁠Dena Karari.

"Dena is now safe and traveling back to the United States," Genser wrote on ​X, thanking Trump for his efforts to free her.

Iran has neither confirmed nor denied that Karari has ​been released.

The release came despite U.S. ‌military strikes across Iran aimed at reopening the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, and amid escalating ⁠threats from Trump that he will bomb Iran's power plants, bridges and energy infrastructure.

Three U.S. officials told Reuters that U.S. strikes aimed at ⁠forcing open the strait are also targeting Iranian military capabilities the U.S. would ​want to destroy before executing more complex operations.

Iran has hit back with what it said were strikes targeting U.S. bases in Kuwait and Jordan.

According ‌to the New York Times, Karari, 53, is a resident of California. She had her passport seized ‌as she visited relatives in the southwestern city of Shiraz in ⁠December 2024.

She was not ‌detained, but was interrogated ​on various occasions by the authorities, the newspaper said, citing her lawyer, Genser.

(Writing by Sharon Singleton;Editing by ‌Alison Williams)


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