Former Iranian prisoners ask Trump to get Americans held there out

CBS News
March 20, 2026
3 min read

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Two former Iranian prisoners appealed to President Trump to secure the release of Americans currently detained in Iran.

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Two former Iranian prisoners, Emad Shargi and Siamak Namazi, appealed to President Trump on CBS's "Face the Nation" to secure the release of Americans currently detained in Iran. Shargi and Namazi were themselves held captive in Iran before their release, giving them direct experience with the country's detention system and the conditions faced by prisoners. The pair used their platform to urge Trump to prioritize freeing U.S. citizens still held there, leveraging their credibility as survivors of Iranian detention. Several Americans remain imprisoned in Iran on espionage and other charges, a longstanding diplomatic tension between Washington and Tehran. Their appeal reflects broader pressure on the Trump administration to address the fate of detained U.S. citizens abroad.

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Former detainees publicly appealed to the Trump administration to prioritize freeing U.S. citizens held in Iranian detention.

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